The Game
by pheobesapphira
Summary: Lily Evans and her friends made up the ultimate game of tag. Being in their 6th year, they want to make it fun. A certain group of Marauders find out about their game. Will they let them join? Rated T for language, to be safe, for now. May change later!
1. Chapter 1

The night air of September 13th was suspiciously silent, however, a thick tension hung in the air.

A petite figure sneakily made their way down the 5th floor corridor, wand held securely in hand. At the echo of footsteps, the person slid behind a body of armor, pushing herself as far up against the wall as she could. She prayed silently that she wouldn't be caught. She waited till for what seemed like ages, her muscles tense, her ears straining as she made sure the footsteps continued further on down the corridor.

When they altogether disappeared, the breath she held whooshed from her lungs. Sweeping the long strands of hair out of her face and tucking them behind her ear, she timidly stepped out from behind her hiding spot. A part of her- the weak part- made her hold her breath again, causing her heartbeat to thrum loudly in her ears. She squinted her emerald eyes, scanning the darkness for any movement. Trying to be efficient, but not wanting to waste time, she moved further out from the armor.

Bad, stupid move.

"_Cesso_!" A voice screamed. She was momentarily blinded by the bright blue flash of a spell. She shrieked, ducking awkwardly to avoid being hit. She felt the heat of the spell pass by her shoulder as she fell to her knees.

"I see you, Lil-ee!" the voice half-sang, half-screeched. Lily cursed, struggling on her hands and knees to get back behind the armor. "I always loved the way the blue of the spell causes your hair to look almost magenta purple!" the voice cackled.

Lily rolled her eyes at the girl's voice, quickly assessing the situation, the scrapes on her knees- _God damn, they hurt!_- and ways of escape. Lightly running her hand over her knees to knock off any of the debris left from the ground, she ground her teeth in annoyance. She was basically trapped.

The other girl called out to her again, throwing out an insult to bait her. The annoyance grew in her throat and she held back a growl, pulling herself into a crouching position. Her grasp on the wand in her hand tightened.

"Hey, Mar?" she called out, placing her back against the cool silver of the armor. "Why don't you do me a favor and shut that loud mouth of yours? Your butchering of my name caused my ears to bleed!" And as soon as she heard the angry guffaw come from the other girl, she bolted, going into an all-out sprint.

"_Cesso_!" she yelled, throwing the spell blindly behind her, hoping it was enough of a distraction. She laughed as she heard a loud screech, but knew her spell had missed its mark. Casting another one and blindly tossing it behind her, she pushed herself harder, adrenaline humming in her veins.

She was faster than Marlene, despite the other girl's advantage of height, but she almost tripped rounding a corner, skidding to a brief halt. She leaned against the wall, gasping for breath, feeling slightly hysterical. Almost high.

She always loved the way it made her feel.

And she hated to lose.

She thought fast, straightening herself and haphazardly tucking her hair behind her ear again. She knew where she was- basically a dead end. The 5th floor corridor led to nowhere special. Nothing to be exact. She wasn't even sure why she chose to go there in the first place.

Marlene's footsteps were coming in fast and automatically her throat tightened in panic. A portrait to her right flung open, and at first she thought it was knocked off, expecting to hear the loud bang as it hit the ground. But soft light poured from behind it, and throwing all sensibility out of her mind, she dashed towards it, just as Marlene herself rounded the corner.

"HEY!" was shouted simultaneously from both Marlene and the person Lily shoved back into the passage. _Male_, she acknowledged.

She heard Marlene shout the spell, ducking instinctively. The portrait's frame slammed back into place, effectively hiding her from her attacker. She felt almost deaf as she leaned against the back of the painting, closing her eyes and enjoying the moment of complete adrenaline and victory. Well, temporary victory. She couldn't stay in here. It'd be cheating.

Her breath hitched when she remembered the person she had shoved- rather rudely, she thought wryly- and opened her eyes slowly in slight apprehension. She relaxed slightly as she realized the light they were in wasn't as bright as she had first assumed, but she could still make out three figures before her.

Four, counting the one on the ground. She winced for him, knowing that he had been struck by the magic.

She couldn't make out their faces, which she hoped it meant the same for them. All obviously male, due to their stance. She felt slightly guilty if one of them wasn't.

"What the fuck?" one of them exclaimed, and she noticed- too late- that they all had their wand trained on her. She raised her hands in surrender, but kept her wand in her hand. The one who spoke was closest to her and she felt suddenly uneasy as she noticed just how tall they were.

"I come in peace?" she improvised, raising her shoulders in a small shrug. She felt a sheepish smile pull at her lips. She wasn't sure if they could see the movements or not.

"What the _fuck_?" one of the other boys ("Men?" She pondered to herself, briefly) reiterated. Faintly, she could hear Marlene cursing on the other side. She almost giggled as she imagined the bewildered, confused looks on each of their faces.

Except the one who was frozen on the ground.

The third boy stooped down to check on their fallen comrade, checking for a pulse.

"_Enervate,_" he spoke, waving his wand above the frozen body.

"That won't work," she told him, matter-of-fact. She fell silent when she could feel all of their burning glares.

"Why the fuck not?" the boy standing closest to her snarled. She raised an eyebrow at him, deciding that he was probably the one she had shoved. It would explain his pissed off demeanor. He stepped closer to her, raising his wand so that it pointed directly at her throat. She swallowed hard, feeling a shiver of fear slide down her spine. She had to crane her neck to stare into the dark shadows of his face. He towered over her.

"Prongs," the boy who was kneeling by the unluckily frozen boy admonished. "What do we have to do?" he directed the question towards her.

She spoke as she squinted her eyes, watching as the boy's features in front of her began to focus. "There's nothing you can do," she told them, breaking off when the boy in front of her basically growled, his wand touching her throat, right at her jugular.

Asshole, she thought.

"I mean," she amended, "he'll be waking up any second. First time you're hit, you get a little groggy. And have a massive headache." She stepped back, running back into the portrait. "Bloody Christ," she spat, growing irritated at the wand that was still positioned at her throat, "He'll be fine. Get your wand off my throat, you bloody prick." And to back up her words, the boy who had been frozen, groaned loudly. She used her forefinger to push away the wand and the boy let it drop.

The third boy barked out a laugh and whistled low. "Well, fellows, we've got a dirty bird on our hands, it seems." But she could hear the relief in his voice as their friend began to stir. She rolled her eyes, slightly put-out that he wouldn't be able to see.

"Shut up, Padfoot," the boy in front of her growled. His voice was husky and almost recognizable, but her mind didn't let her pull a face to match it. If she knew them, they'd probably know her, right?

She turned, her back facing them as she listened for any noises out in the corridor. She pulled up her sleeve, revealing pale glowing numbers and letters written across the skin of her forearm. She cursed as she read the stats. They made no sense! She had been in second. Now she was in fourth? That couldn't be right! And there were only five minutes left. If she made it to base on time, she could maybe pull through as second. Determination filled her as she formed a plan in her head.

"_Hello_? I asked you a question," husky voice said, anger and annoyance creating perfect harmony. He grabbed her arm and turned her towards them. "What the hell are you running from?" he shot at her, but she ignored him. "And who the fuck do you think you are?" he voice growing louder.

"_Prongs_, calm the hell down," 'Padfoot' ordered, but she waved them off, knowing they'd see the gesture in the semi-darkness. She took a deep breath, decision made.

Before any of them could stop her, she flipped open the hatch and pushed open the door. As suspected, Marlene had been waiting, shouting out the curse and pointing it almost spot on. Lily tumbled and rolled, the spell bursting as it hit the backside of the painting. The boys inside the room all shouted, stunned and slightly alarmed, but Lily paid them no attention, charging Marlene so that she go back the way they came.

"What the hell?" Marlene yelled, confused by the other party inside the passage. Lily took the chance and shot the spell at her. It hit Marlene in the arm, freezing her body as she collapsed to the floor. It wasn't exactly cheating, Lily thought, taking off without another thought. As she ran, she rolled up her sleeve again, nodding in satisfaction as her attack awarded her enough points to be put into third. Now all she had to do was make it to base on time.

_The Great Hall. The Great Hall. The Great Hall._ She repeated it like mantra, trying to ignore the burning in her thighs. She let out an elated giggle, as she made it to the homestretch. She arrived at the top of the stairs that led to the Great Hall, just as another opponent arrived at the end of the corridor.

"_Cesso_!" the girl at the end of the hall shouted and Lily fell to her knees, taking advantage of the muscles that no longer seemed to work. She ducked in time, swinging her arm around and repeating the spell. She smiled with satisfaction as it hit its target, and she stood with shaky legs and bloody knees.

Feeling giddy more than tired, she half-skipped down the steps, already celebrating her victory in her mind. Fourth step from the bottom, her foot slipped from beneath her. She yelped, falling backwards onto the step-_ very, very hard step._- before tumbling down the last of the stairs. She rolled to a stop on her back, feeling dazed. She heard giggling from above her.

"Ow," she whined pitifully, rolling herself up into a sitting position. She rubbed at her hip bone and at her ankle, wincing at the pain that blossomed there.

"Lily, can you ever avoid getting hurt?" a soft voice full of mirth asked, before the giggles around her dissolved into full-out laughter. She sent the two girls in front of her a baleful look, but she couldn't help but laugh at herself.

"Hey, it's not my fault stairs, tables, and walls love me!"

"Lily," Marlene started, skipping gracefully down the steps to meet them, her arms linked with the girl's Lily had managed to freeze just before her fall. "I assure you, those stairs, tables and walls feel something for you, but it's not love." All five girls erupted into giggles, collapsing in a circle in the middle of the Hall.

"Alright, down to business," Marlene stated, switching to a serious mood. All the girls sobered, nodding gravely. "Lily, will you do the honors?" Dutiful, Lily nodded, waving her wand. Before them, a chart materialized, listing each of the girls names and scores.

A. Hartwell- 105  
D. Meadows- 95  
L. Evans- 90  
M. Mckinnon- 75  
E. Vance - 75

"Ha!" Alice crowed, "I beat you ALL!" She jumped up, pumping her fist in the air. Dorcas shook her head at her, her dirty blonde hair falling over her shoulder, completely amused. The girls broke out into conversation, replaying each of their accounts in the game.

"Fourth?" Marlene groused, folding her arms into her chest. Lily laughed and nudged her with her elbow.

"Next time," she said, smiling at her, tucking her messy curls back behind her ear. Emmeline laughed, reaching over mussing up Marlene's dark hair.

"Yeah, yeah," Marlene huffed, but laughed, slapping Emmeline's hand away.

"Think you can stay off your ass next time, Lily?" Dorcas joked, as the girls collected themselves to return to the dorms.

"I sure hope so," Lily murmured, appraising her injuries. She winced when she moved. "I don't think my bum can take another year of bruising." She rubbed at her hip absentmindedly. "Help me up?"

Dorcas and Marlene lent her a hand, and they hauled her up carefully. She hissed as she tested out her ankle. It was slightly swollen, the dark bruise blemishing the pale skin.

"I think it's sprained," Emmeline noted, examining it quickly. "And we don't have any pain-reliever potions made yet."

"I'll go to Pomfrey tomorrow morning," Lily decided, leaning against Dorcas as a crutch. They'd only just arrived for the school year two days ago, but eager to get back into the routine for the Game, they chose tonight. Classes started in the morning, which had not made the best time to have a Game. But the girls were willing to risk falling asleep the first day of classes to have their secret fun.

"You always go all out, Evans," Marlene said, "we know you're aspiring to be an auror, but there's no need to go all out for the game!" They began their way back to Gryffindor tower.

"But it's more fun that way," Lily grinned.

* * *

I know, I know, everyone will probably hate me, but I took into a lot of consideration of the reviews ive gotten, and i decided i want to REVAMP this fanfic. Kinda have it flow and make more sense!

Thank you though, for all of those who have reviewed in the past! it has been a LONG while, but I assure you.. i want to WORK ON THIS!

i just need that dang motivation.

Hope you find this at least somewhat interesting and fun? It'll get better! I PROMISE!


	2. Chapter 2

The morning dawned early; the sun filtering in through the girls' dormitory windows. Lily blearily opened her eyes, squinting through the morning light. Shutting her eyes a moment later, she rolled over and tucked the warm covers tighter to her body. She sighed in content at the warmth.

"Ah, ah, Lily, I know you're awake!" Emmeline sang and Lily felt her friend tugging at the corner of her comforter. She clutched tighter at the sheets, wincing at the soreness of her muscles and joints. "Come on," Emmeline insisted. "You're already up!"

"No, I'm not," Lily whined into her pillow, giving up on trying to hold onto the covers as the other girl pulled them down. "I need more sleep! How can you always be so bloody perky in the morning?"

Emmeline ignored her comment, tapping on Lily's calf. "You need to see Madam Pomfrey before breakfast," she reminded Lily. "You know how she always like to chat. Better get down there with enough time to get your schedule." And despite Lily's own body whining at her not to move, her mind agreed with Emmeline.

"I know," she said softly, slowly sitting up. She shivered as the cold air hit her bare arms and slowly threw her legs over the side of the bed, before gingerly standing. She used her good foot to balance as she tested out her injured ankle, immediately hissing in response. "Ow," she whimpered. The walk to the bathroom seemed daunting.

Somehow she made it, ignoring the snickers from the other girls who were already awake, as she half limped-half hopped across the floor. Sending a rather rude gesture that required only one finger, she slipped behind the bathroom door.

The hot water soothed her tense muscles as she rolled her shoulders, rubbing at the sore joints. She took her time washing her hair, enjoying the smell of her vanilla shampoo. The hot water, however, seemed to agitate her ankle. She frowned down at it as she dried herself off with a towel, tucking wet strands of hair behind her ears. The pale skin around the bone was bruised a dark purple, tinged with yellow and green: a decidedly unhealthy color.

She dried her hair with her wand, the messy curls falling somewhat tame down her back, and dressed quickly. She, like usual, took the time to make sure her shirttails were tucked into her skirt fully, before sliding a grey sweater over her head.

She glance in the mirror to make sure the red and gold tie around her neck fell straight, then pulled her hair back, twisting it into a messy, but secure bun at the nape of her neck. Shorter, uneven pieces of hair fell out around her face, framing her cheeks and tickling at her chin. Lastly, she applied mascara and eye liner lightly, careful to not smudge the make up as she swiped it on quickly.

Sinking onto her bed, she reached into her trunk to pull out her black knee high socks. She grimaced absentmindedly.

"You don't have to wear those, Lily," Marlene laughed, watching as her friend stared down at the offensive objects in her hand. "You don't always have to be in regulation, you know."

"I know," Lily huffed defensively, clutching the socks tighter in her hands. She reasoned with herself; slipping the socks on would cause more pain, something she wouldn't be too happy about. But she knew she wouldn't feel herself if she left them off.

She slipped the pair of socks into her book bag, deciding to put them on later, after Madam Pomfrey healed her ankle. Technically she wouldn't be out of regulation since they weren't in class yet.

She caught Marlene smirking at her, her friend's long, dark hair dancing as she shook her head in amusement. "Oh, shut it," Lily snapped, but not unkindly, while rolling her eyes at friend. "Escort me to the infirmary, Miss Mckinnon?" she asked, raising her chin and turning her nose up at the air. Marlene laughed, before grabbing her skirt and curtsying before her. She held her hand out to help Lily stand.

"My lady," Marlene simpered, laughing as she helped Lily wobbled to wear her black flats lay on the ground next to her trunk. Lily slipped them on, glad she didn't have to wear sneakers. She'd definitely have a problem if so.

"We'll be back!" Marlene called loudly, receiving groans from the other two girls who were still sleeping. Emmeline waved from her bed, her face hidden behind a book as she read.

The climb down the stairs from the dormitories was tricky, as the stairs seemed too steep and the walls too close together to walk side by side comfortably. Marlene led, as Lily held onto her hand tightly, feeling slightly nervous. Marlene noticed the uneasy look on Lily's face and smiled consolingly.

"Hey, if you fall, I'll catch your skinny bum, okay?" she reassured. "Or, more than likely, I'd break your fall, sending us both down these damn steps," she joked.

Lily laughed. "Aren't you chaser on the Quidditch team, Mckinnon? Hopefully your reflexes are better than your jokes."

"Hey, I am a wonderful player, thank you very much," her friend replied, glancing up to glare at the redhead jokingly. "And I am wonderfully funny!"

They made it down the stairs almost scotch-free, when Lily's foot slipped on the last stair, causing her heart to jump high into her throat. Marlene steadied her as they both chuckled nervously.

"I can't understand how one person can be so accident prone," Marlene exclaimed, holding the portrait open for her as she stepped, Lily hopped, out of the common room. Lily responded with a shrug. seemingly contemplating the rater tough question.

"I like to think of it as the world showing me its love. Love taps here and there," Lily informed her, laughing lightly. "It wants me so bad it can't help itself." Marlene laughed loudly, the sound bouncing off the empty hallway's walls.

"Blimey, Lily, you know, I never realized how rough you liked it." She waggled her eyebrows at her and Lily pulled a face in response, laughing along with her.

"Speaking of which," Marlene continued. "Last night, that portrait's passage. Someone else was there, weren't they?" Lily nodded, taking a moment to be confused on how the girl beside her can find the similarities between the two subjects.

"Four, actually," she told her. "Boys. I wasn't sure who they were, though. It was too dark to see their faces. But your spell hit one of them. They went almost bloody mad!"

"We've had run-ins with other students before, but we were able to sort of alter their memory before they told. You sure you didn't recognize them?" Marlene asked her, as they rounded the corridor that led to the stairs that opened to the Great Hall.

"I can't be sure," Lily murmured. "One of their voices sounded really familiar, but I just cant seem to place it." She tapped her lips, pondering.

"It kind of worries me. Hopefully they won't do anything. Report us. Do you think that there were someone we should look out for? Would you recognize them if you ran into them?" Marlene asked her curiously, as they came to a halt at the top of the stairs.

"Probably," Lily shrugged, taking a deep breath as she looked down the large flight of stairs. A few students were already surprisingly awake, milling about the entry way. She watched for a moment as they chatted for a bit, before entering into the Great Hall for breakfast. They shuffled over a little bit to allow a group of third year girls pass them. Lily watched them go, skipping their merry way down. Marlene caught Lily's eye and they smiled wryly at each other.

"Ready for battle?" Marlene joked, as they adjusted themselves. Lily slung her arm over Marlene's shoulder, while the other girl wrapped an arm around Lily's waist, grabbing a handful of sweater.

"As much as I can be," Lily replied, as they started the tedious journey down the steps. As they made it to the fifth step down, Marlene let out a giggle.

"What?" Lily inquired, feeling a spike of annoyance. Nervousness spiked in her stomach as she stared down at the hard, stone steps. They had hurt her once before.. they probably were not afraid to do so again.

"I just remember watching you tumble down the stairs. Oh, I can picture the look on your face!" Marlene chuckled again, valiantly trying to use her free hand to stifle her laughter.

"Ha. Ha," Lily scowled. "So very funny. Your best friend almost falling to her death. Absolutely hilarious."

"Oh, come on," Marlene giggled. "It was what, five? Four steps that you fell down?" Her eyes glinted with humor, before her facial expression turned somber for a moment. "Although, with your pension for falling, I guess we really should have been worried."

Lily scowled again as Marlene laughed, no longer able to keep the straight face. Peeved, Lily removed her arm from her shoulder and placed her hand on the railing. Spurned on by her friends amusement, she took a step by herself, placing her good foot down first, followed by her bad ankle. She wavered, suddenly feeling off balance as her weaker ankle gave out beneath her. She swung her arms out to balance herself. It didn't work.

She heard Marlene's frantic call of her name as she began to fall forward, her heart leaping into her throat. She cried out instinctively, preparing herself for the crash landing. Oh god, it would hurt.

"Oof!"

She landed hard, but not against the concrete stairs like she had thought. Arms, she realized, dazedly. Speechless, as her heart was still stuck in her throat, she struggled to open her eyes. The arms around her held onto her securely; one wrapped around her waist with the other around her shoulders.

"Lily! Bleeding hell! I really didn't mean to let you fall! You let go of me- which was stupid, by the way, but I couldn't grab you in time! I'm so sorry!" Marlene rambled from somewhere above her. Lily swallowed hard, managing to open her eyes enough to peak through her lashes.

She groaned.

"Well, Evans," the deep voice murmured from above her, seemingly reverberating through his chest into hers. "If I knew you wanted to be in my arms, I would've invited into my bed last night," he spoke, his tone obviously joking, but the underlying meaning filled with implications. Her teeth clenched.

"Potter," she fumed. "Please set me right."

"Can do," he chuckled, pulling her up and setting her right against him. She pushed back away from his chest, but swayed. He steadied her, using one of his hands to grasp just under her elbow, while the other grabbed onto her wrist. "Whoa," he chuckled again. "Careful, there, Evans."

"Thanks," she murmured begrudgingly, stepping back more slowly from him again. His grasp on her forearm was released, but his other hand stayed at her elbow. Marlene fluttered over her, asking a flurry of questions.

"Is anything broken? Is your ankle okay? Holy mother of Merlin, Lily. You literally can't help it," she rattled. Lily laughed in amusement, trying to shush her friend.

"I'm _fine_, Marlene! Calm down, calm down!" Lily said, grabbing the other girls flying arms. Marlene shook her head, letting out a quick, relieved laugh. She pressed her palm against her heart.

"But the way that you would've fell!" she continued, turning as she acknowledged James. "Thank you, Captain! You just about saved her life!" He laughed, mocking a salute with two fingers. "Come on, Lily, lets get you to the infirmary."

"Need any help?" James offered, but Lily waved him off.

"I'm fine, but thanks," she told him, wrapping her arm around Marlene's shoulder. James nodded and then turned to leave. She watched him curiously.

"Merlin, Lily, I mean, I assumed you liked it_ rough_, but I'm pretty sure breaking your neck is not gonna get anyone off," Marlene informed her seriously, tightening her arm around the redhead's waist.

Lily's ears burned when she realized that James was still in hearing range. From the corner of her eye, she saw as he turned to look back at them, his eyebrows raised high beneath his hair. Her cheeks burned as Marlene led her away, unable to clear up the false innuendo.

Lily and Potter had never really gotten along over the past five years. Despite being in the same year and house, the clicks they belonged to had never really crossed paths beyond classes; which was something that she was completely fine with. Wherever the group of boys went, trouble and terror was bound to follow. Potter himself had always seemed too cocky, acknowledging his good looks and charms, and then using them for bad. She rolled her eyes as she recalled the countless girls who fell at his feet, undeterred by his age. And though he had never been truly _mean_ to her, she saw how he would treat other students. Especially Slytherins.

Though they ran into each other occasionally, he had sometimes seemed to take time out of his busy day to tease her purposely, calling her out on her 'good-girl' attitude and her abidance to the rules of the school. When she became prefect last year, he sought her out singularly, just to congratulate her on the opportunity, commenting that she was absolutely perfect for the position. And that he would be happy to show her quite a few more.

And, unfailingly, after each time he taunted her, he'd always throw out "Go out with me, Evans." She'd roll her eyes and and, of course, turn him down. The mood she was in, though, seemed to dictate her (somewhat usual courteous) response. More often than not, she noticed, it seemed to be the days she was not in the best mood.

_That_ game was growing old.

They'd arrive at the doors of the infirmary before she'd even realized. Marlene pushed open the door, carefully leading Lily into the bright room.

"Madam Pomfrey?" Lily called, using Marlene's arm to balance herself. The head of a young woman appeared outside the small office in the back, grinning good-naturedly at the two girls. She frowned in concerned and rushed to them as she noticed their position.

"Miss Evans! Not even a week into the school year and I'm already seeing you?" Madam Pomfrey admonished, directing them to an empty bed with clean linen sheets. She tsked, gently pushing Lily onto it, while lifting Lily's injured ankle onto a pillow. Marlene jumped into the bed beside her, laying back and placing her hands behind her head as she got comfortable.

"I missed you, Poppy," Lily joked, trying not to roll her eyes at Marlene. She managed to smile warmly up at her healer. "And well, you know me." She waved her hand over injury. "Wouldn't you have been more worried if I hadn't shown up?" She winced as the healer poked and prodded at her ankle.

"It sprained, dear," she told Lily. "Let me go whip something up to take away the pain. I'll just be a moment." She disappeared back into her office. Lily sighed, leaning more into the soft pillows. She closed her eyes.

"Hey. No falling asleep!" Marlene scolded, but when Lily looked over at her, her friend's eyes were closed as well.

"Hypocrite," Lily murmured back, but shook her head fondly. She smoothed her skirt down over her thighs, thinking to herself.

"Only two more years, Mar," she mused out loud, tracing the lines of the ceiling she had seen countless times before. "Before we're out in the real world and we can't return to this infirmary at the smallest injury."

"Blimey, depressing much?" Marlene groused, rolling over and facing her. "But I guess it's true... I try not think about it, you know? We'll all be split up after next year." She twirled a piece of dark hair idly. "No more of the game," she pointed out, her tone sad.

"I know," Lily replied softly, watching as the healer returned and handed her a vial of dark liquid. Her nose wrinkled at the stale smell.

"Drink up," Pomfrey told her, cheerfully. She pulled out her wand and waved it over Lily's ankle, muttering various spells.

"Try not to think about it," Marlene supplied helpfully. She grinned. "And anyways, shouldn't you be used to the stuff?" Lily glared at her, before bringing the opening of the vial to her lips. She tossed it back, swallowing it in two gulps.

"Bleh," she gasped, trying to hold back a gag. She breathed through her mouth, her nose wrinkling again at the taste. Marlene giggled behind her hand.

"I always love your faces," she cooed, reaching over and pinching her cheek. Lily swatted at her, annoyed. Pomfrey held her hand out of the empty vial and Lily placed it in the older woman's palm.

"Good," the healer beamed. "Now, give it about five or so minutes and you'll be on your way."

"Thank you," Lily replied sincerely, smiling up at the woman. "I'll see you soon," she called to her back as Madam Pomfrey returned to her small office. The healer only snorted in response and the two girls struggled to hide their laughter.

-:-

The two girls made it to the Gryffindor table shortly after, finding a spot for their group easily. The hall was still somewhat empty, though more and more students trickled in as the time began to pass.

Lily reached over to grab a piece of bacon as Marlene began to fill up her plate. The other girls had yet to arrive, but they'd be there shortly. Lily tore the piece apart, taking her time as she nibbled the small slice.

"Do you think we should be worried?" Marlene wondered as she buttered her toast.

"About what?"

"The group you ran into," she said, brushing the crumbs off her hands. Lily chewed on her bacon, considering. Finishing it, she wiped her hands on a napkin before tucking a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"They didn't recognize me," she recalled, shrugging her shoulders. "And they don't exactly have proof of my presence," she reasoned, more to herself. Marlene nodded, picking up her fork and taking a bite of her eggs.

"Should we tell the others?"

"I don't see any need to. We can just lay low for a bit. Wait a week or so till the next game."

"You have to let me know if you recognize any of them."

"I will," Lily promised, grabbing a piece of jellied toast for herself. The voice of the boy- _man_?- echoed in her mind; husky and deep. How could she not recognize it?

"Hey," Dorcas greeted them, falling into the seat beside Lily. Emmeline and Alice followed suit, sitting on the other side of the table.

"So tired," Alice murmured, resting her chin in her hand. She used the other to collect a bagel for breakfast.

"Mm," Dorcas agreed, resting her forehead on her arms. Lily laughed, reaching further down the table to retrieve a pitcher for them.

"Coffee," she insisted, "classes start today. At least look alive when McGonagall comes to hand out our schedules." She poured a cup for herself.

"Think this year will be easy?" Emmeline asked, filling up her own plate.

"We don't have O.W.L.S. or the N.E.W.T.S. to worry about this year," Dorcas mumbled, her voice even more muffled from behind her arms.

"Don't get my hopes up for an easy year, ladies," Alice whined. "O.W.L.s were hard enough."

"When should we plan our next rendezvous?" Emmeline asked, dropping her voice lower. Marlene's and Lily's eyes met.

"Sometime next week?" Dorcas perked up. "Or even this weekend again?" The other girls murmured in agreement, but Lily bit her lip. Marlene shrugged at her from across the table.

"Let's get our schedules first," Lily suggested. Despite the slight endangerment of being caught, she still did want to play.. "We'll compare classes and see what's best to do."

They broke off as McGonagall approached them, a stack of papers in her hand. "Good morning, ladies," she greeted, leafing through the stack.

"Morning," the girls sang, half the group eager to see their schedule, the other half.. not so much. The professor handed a schedule to each of them, before continuing on down the table.

Lily eyes scanned the paper, nodding to herself as she read it once, then again. "Not bad for me," she spoke aloud. Alice groaned from across her.

"Potions. Monday and Wednesday mornings," she complained. "I hate potions."

"Well, we can enjoy Sluggy together than, Alice," Dorcas told her, waving her schedule.

"Charms and then Potions for me," Emmeline stated. Lily grinned, showing off her own schedule.

"Charms for my morning, but I have Defense this afternoon. Potions on Tuesdays and Thursdays." She smiled.

The rest of the girls groaned at her. "You always like your schedule, Evans," Marlene whined. "It's only 'cause you're a_ bookworm_." She stuck her tongue out at the redhead.

"Ha. Ha," Lily said deadpanned, but tried to stifle her own laughter. "Thursday night, then?" she asked, when they calmed down.

"I'm in," Dorcas said immediately. They rest of the girls agreed.

"Thursday then. Midnight."

The rest of the breakfast passed as they sat in a comfortable silence, each paying attention to their food and studying their own schedules.

When they finished, Dorcas started complaining about classes again and while Alice joined in on the conversation, she was enthusiastic. Lily could hear Emmeline reprimand Dorcas, clearly on Alice's side, but Lily didn't pay much attention. She cradled her cup of coffee to her lips.

Almost involuntarily, her eyes scanned the hall, watching as student began to depart for their classes. Following the lines of the tables, her eyes fell onto someone at her own, further down.

_Potter_, she thought, watching as he laughed with his friends. His arms gestured wildly as he told, what she assumed, a telling tale. Almost as if he heard her say his name in her mind, he looked up, catching her gaze easily. Quickly, she fixed her stare down into the dark liquid of her cup, afraid to glance back up to see if he was still looking at her.

"Lily?"

"Hm?" she answered absentmindedly, looking up at Marlene. Her friend was looking down at her strangely.

"We're leaving. Classes are starting soon," Marlene informed her, motioning with her head. When Lily checked for herself, she found that the rest of the group was already walking out of the Great Hall.

"Oh!" Lily collected her things quickly, throwing back one last big gulp of her coffee, then took off behind Marlene. She glanced back automatically, her eyes locking onto James' hazel ones. He winked at her.

She scoffed.

* * *

Hope you enjoyed it!


	3. Chapter 3

"I am fairly excited for Charms this year," Lily murmured to Emmeline as they sat in the aforementioned classroom. Lily wrote out her vocabulary and notes dutifully, smiling over at Emmeline. Her blonde friend chuckled in return, shaking her head. The professor stood before them at his podium, droning on.

"You're such a kiss-ass."

"Oh, shut up, you tosser," Lily replied, nudging Emmeline's foot rather roughly. The movement caused the other girl's writing hand to veer off, leaving a long dark streak across the page.

"Oh, you-"

Lily only returned her friends anger with a brilliant smile, smartly pulling her ink well and parchment closer to herself. Emmeline shook her head, but was unable to stay angry as her friend gave her an apologetic smile.

"You take too many notes," Emmeline teased, pretending to try to make a streak on Lily's own page. Silently giggling, Lily pushed the parchment out of her friend's reach and stuck out her tongue childishly.

"You don't take enough notes," Lily remarked quietly, still smiling.

"We all can't be a perfect student," Emmeline quipped. Lily smiled again, fluttering her eyelashes in exaggerated flattery. Emmeline knocked Lily's elbow with her own, causing the redhead to gasp in alarm as she almost tipped over her own inkwell.

"A problem, ladies?" the professor asked, looking down his nose at them, a twinkle in his eye.

"N-no, sir," Emmeline stuttered, trying to stifle her laughter, avoiding Lily's heavy glare.

Charms ended a little to quickly for Lily's tastes, but her or Emmeline could hardly keep their mirth at bay, as the two continued on ways to try to knock each other's inkwells and quills aside. Neither had truly succeeded, except for marking each other's hands with various black marks. The professor had dismissed the class, deciding to not give homework on their first day.

Defense Against the Dark Arts was only fifteen minutes later, once the class ended. Lily had to fight against the wave of the crowd to make it to the classroom on time. By the time she reached the Defense tower, the classroom was full. She spotted Marlene towards the front, next to an empty spot.

"Did you run here?" Marlene asked, clearly amused, as Lily took the open seat, lightly huffing.

"Just about," Lily replied, more than breathless. "I'm not sure I like the timing of this schedule today," she sighed, reaching into her book bag and retrieving her Defense book, notes, and a quill. As she set them up on her desk, she glanced around the classroom to take inventory. Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors this year, she noted, pleased.

"Hello, Alice," said Lily, noticing the blondish brunette was sitting just behind Marlene and her's desk. "Hello, Frank," she greeted warmly.

"Hiya, Lily!" he greeted her, just as friendly. He bent down to retrieve his own book by his feet and Lily turned back to Alice, waggling her eyebrows suggestively.

"Shut _up,"_ Alice mouthed silently, her cheeks turning a light pink. She glared balefully at Lily, but returned to her normal smile when Frank emerged from below the table. Alice may have smiled a little too sweetly and he glance between the two friends suspiciously.

"Lovely day," Lily supplied, smiling brightly as Alice's cheeks turned a smidgen more red. Lily glanced around the room behind them, finding a few different classmates from the Hufflepuff year she recognized. At the back of the class, sat Remus, Sirius, and James. As if on cue, James caught her eye and winked, before turning back to his friends. Stubbornly, she turned back around to face the front of the class, feeling paranoid as she heard the familiar laugh of the Gryffindor boys from behind her.

"Ink war with Em, again?" Marlene asked, glancing at Lily's hands knowingly. Lily laughed, rubbing her hands together, feeling the dried ink.

"Unfailingly, you always know," Lily replied, studying her own hands.

"It's pretty obvious," said Marlene dryly, unable to keep a smile off of her face. She reached for her own parchment for notes and placed it in front of her. "Think this year will be any good?"

"I hope so," Lily said. "Can't be any worse than last year, could it?"

They both shuddered as they remembered the timid, small professor who had attempted to teach last year. It probably had not helped that they had been paired with Slytherins.

The classroom fell silent as the Professor's office door opened with a loud creak. A man, possibly in his late thirties, Lily surmised, revealed himself. He was slender, but tall, with short brown hair that was buzzed short. His cloak, a dark grey, followed behind him as he skipped down the small steps agilely.

"Good afternoon," he spoke, with a voice much more gravelly than anyone his age should have. He stepped behind his desk, facing towards his students as he raised his wand to write on the board. "My name shall be known as Professor Donhell," he informed them, waving his wand simultaneously. He name appeared on the blackboard just as he said.

"I want to start off with saying this year will be different," he continued, ambling forward to walk around his desk. He gave the classroom a long, measured look. "This year, outside of these walls, things are changing. Here, in this classroom, you will learn Defense Against the Arts. There's a war that is coming and we need to be prepared."

Lily and Marlene shared an intrigued look.

"You've been learning the theories and applications of spells in Defense, but now it's time to learn how to _really_ use them. How to actually use your wand and not be afraid. I want to see action."

Lily and Marlene shared another look. "_No notes_?" Marlene mouthed silently. At this, Lily gave her a dubious look.

"I know some of you have been practicing spells more than others." He paused to give Lily and Marlene a strict look, but Lily couldn't decide if it was for scolding them on talking, or if he actually knew something other teachers didn't. "But we want to have everyone on the same page. As a wizard or witch, your wand, of course, is your most prized possession and weapon..."

He paused again, for what Lily assumed was to cause some anticipation. Which, as she glanced furtively around, seemed to be working. His own wand was out now, as he crossed his hands behind his back, walking back around to the blackboard.

"But, of course, knowing and remembering your spells are the most important. So... if you would please, turn to page 9 in your books." The class let out a collective unhappy moan, as the Professor grinned somewhat happily.

-:-

"What is he thinking!" Marlene exclaimed, stretching her hand out experimentally. She winced as it cramped and held it against her chest. "Twenty-five bleeding pages? Is he _mad?_"

Lily giggled in amusement as Marlene ranted, clearly unhappy. "Was it really twenty-five? Didn't seem like that many..." Lily smirked, as Marlene gave her an evil look.

"You've got to let me copy your notes, Lily, please," Marlene pleaded, stuffing her notes into her bag.

"Oh, no, no," Lily argued. "You're not copying my notes! You can write them yourself!"

"Please, Lily?" Marlene begged, trying to pull off her best puppy-dog eyes.

"You can do it yourself," Lily scoffed, laughing in disbelief. She shouldered her bag and waited for Marlene to join her as they walked down the classroom aisle to the currently clogged classroom door.

"If I beat you by fifty points, you've got to let me copy your notes," Marlene bargained. Lily's jaw dropped as she glanced around shrewdly. Did she _want _someone to hear about the game?

"Uh, no," Lily retorted, adjusting the strap on her bag.

"Pussy," Marlene goaded, smiling rather mischievously. Lily laughed outright.

_"Excuse_ me? That won't work, Mckinnon."

"You heard me," Marlene pushed, her expression torn between begging and trying to goad Lily into the bet.

"Yes, yes, I did, and you know what?" Lily stopped and turned to face Marlene directly. "Even if I did accept that bet, we both know I'd still win. And don't call me a pussy, slag."

Marlene scoffed loudly. "Okay, we know you get more into it and like to be all kick-ass, but I could still score more than you. Anyday."

A male voice interrupted Lily before she could retort.

"I don't know James, I think Mckinnon's quite the spitfire. But, of course, it's hard to say," Sirius grinned, rubbing his cheek in thought. James stood beside him, gazing wonderingly at the two girls.

"Well, Sirius.. I think we all know the more bookish ones end up racking up those numbers, don't they?" James replied, his teeth white as he grinned.

"Oh, my bleeding hell, really?" Lily cried, laughing in disbelief. At first, she thought they had heard their conversation and would question them. But, boys being boys, took their argument completely out of context. Marlene even looked at them, stifling laughter. "Don't be arses," Lily scolded them.

"Oh, but she's got a mouth," Sirius quipped.

"Always a dirty bird," James grinned.

"Bugger off, Captain," Marlene smirked, lacing arms with Lily as they side-stepped the two boys.

"Bet's on," Lily told her and Marlene only cackled loudly.

"Evans!" James called from behind her. He jogged lightly to catch up to them.

"What is it, Potter?"

"Did you get your ankle checked out?" he asked, his face and tone serious.

"Yes?" she answered, rather rudely, but more out of confusion. Marlene pulled her along, waving goodbye to the Quidditch captain politely. Lily glanced back curiously, found Sirius and James already in a conversation, heading the opposite way.

* * *

I TOTALLY deleted this chapter by accident and COMPLETELY forgot what was in it.. but i dont think anything too important.. slightly rewrote it, but i sort of remembered what it was about. Sorry about it being so short!


	4. Chapter 4

Lily groaned loudly when she was violently shaken awake. "Go away," she mumbled into her pillow, curling into a fetal position. She growled when the shaking continued on, stronger.

"Come on, Lily," Emmeline spoke cheerfully.

"Stop," Lily replied, growing annoyed. She kicked her foot out, grinning when she felt it connect to its target.

"Ow!" she heard her friend cry loudly, but also causing the shaking to stop. "Bitch," Emmeline snarled and Lily heard the rustle of clothes as she walked away, thinking Emmeline had finish her pestering. She sighed contentedly into her warm bed, bringing her knees back up to curl back into a ball.

"Fuck!" Lily screamed when she felt a body jump onto her full force, knocking the breath out of her. A knee jabbed into her ribs and she cried out. "Get _off_!" she screamed, trying to move her arms that were stuck to her sides. She tried to roll, doing little damage to the hold the person had on her.

"Lily," Emmeline sang right into her ear, poking Lily in the cheek. The redhead jerked her head away from the offensive hand.

"I'm up! I'm UP!" she snarled, but Emmeline giggled in response from above her.

"No falling back asleep," she ordered, wagging her finger in her friends face.

"I won't! Now get off! _Get off!_" Emmeline finally complied, making sure to make it as inconvenient as possible, throwing her elbows and knees out as she slid from the bed.

"Dear Merlin, Em," Dorcas called from her own four poster bed. "No need to break any ribs over there." Emmeline smiled happily before skipping to her own vanity.

"I would've gotten up eventually," Lily snarled, throwing her sheets off of herself. She rubbed at her eyes, groaning at the tense feeling. She needed more sleep.

"You've got potions this morning," Emmeline reminded. "Sluggy wouldn't want you late for your first class." Lily sneered at her, throwing her legs over her bed and stood to stretch.

"Slughorn can kiss my ass," Lily stated, rolling her shoulders.

"I'm pretty sure he would've already snogged your pretty, little bum if it wouldn't get him fired," Marlene cut in, stepping through the door from the bathroom. Her dark hair was still wet, but she was already dressed in her uniform.

"Oh, _ew,_ please." Lily shuddered at the imagery, holding back a gag. "Please stop now before that goes any further." The friends that were awake laughed at her. Marlene rolled her eyes, but grinned evilly.

"Professor Sluggy sure would-"

"_Stop_!" Lily cried, covering her ears. She began singing loudly when Marlene responded by speaking louder. Lily hurried into the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

She showered quickly, humming herself to keep her mind busy. When she turned the water off, she dried herself quickly, not sure how much time she had before classes started.

She was relieved when she returned into the dorm room, finding the other girls busy with their own things. She dressed quickly, making sure to pull on her socks up to her knees securely. She kept her hair wet, but pulled it into a half ponytail, the band knotting in her hair. She applied her make up routinely: brown eyeliner and mascara.

When she retrieved her bag from the end of the bed and shouldered it, she turned to Marlene.

"Eager much?" Marlene joked from her place on her bed.

"Bugger off, Mar."

The girls traveled to the Great Hall for breakfast shortly after, Dorcas taking the longest to get ready. Lily wondered why Emmeline didn't bother her.

"I feel like we've already been in classes for a week," Alice huffed, her short hair curled neatly above her shoulders.

"Is it fall break yet?" Dorcas wondered jokingly.

"Slackers," Lily threw at them, but smiled affectionately.

They sat down at the almost full table, Lily and Marlene sitting next to each other, while Alice, Emmeline, Dorcas sat across them. While Lily piled eggs and biscuits onto her plate, her eyes habitually scanned the hall, watching the students chat and talk, some rather cheerful, others obviously still tired.

Her eyes sought out Severus at the next table unthinkingly. She found her ex-friend easily, sitting at the end of the Slytherin table, surrounded by empty seats. She felt a flash of pity, but quickly squashed it. She wondered briefly if Slytherins shared Potions with Gryffindors today.

James was further down their own table, sitting with his own group of friends. Lily recognized a blonde Hufflepuff 5th year listening to him talk, the girl giving James her full, rapt attention. Lily couldn't help but roll her eyes, but when she went to look at her food, she caught Marlene staring at her, waggling her eyebrows.

"Who has potions this morning, again?" Lily asked, avidly avoiding Marlene's face by taking a bite of her eggs.

"Had mine yesterday," Alice informed her, smiling brightly as Frank entered the hall. She waved enthusiastically.

"Same for me," Dorcas told her, pouring herself a cup of coffee.

"I know you said you had Potions after Charms yesterday, Em," Lily interrupted her, not rudely. "Mar?" she asked, looking at her hopefully. Her friend shook her head sorrowfully.

"Last class of the day," she told Lily, shrugging her shoulders apologetically.

"Eh," Lily brushed it off. "I'll survive. How is it that all of our schedules are so different?" Her friends only shrugged in reply. She picked up a piece of toast and buttered it slowly.

"Mail's here," Dorcas pointed out, and indeed it was. Owls, school-owned and student-owned, arched through the air. Lily pushed her plate away as she recognized her own, Mina. She was a small owl, brown with bright yellow eyes. The small bird landed gracefully in front of her owner, bobbing her head.

"Thank you, Mina," Lily spoke softly, taking the letter from her beak, then running her fingers over the owl's feathers. The letter itself was rather thick, but she recognized her mother's hand writing scrawled on the front.

She retrieved an unused knife from the table, using it to slide and tear open the envelope cleanly. Her heart dropped slightly when she pulled out the invite. The folded paper was crisp, with lavender trimming and beautiful lettering.

She bit back a groan. Marlene looked at her questioningly, eyes falling onto the paper curiously, before her expression immediately turned into sympathetic recognition.

_Rose Evans_

_And_

_Robert and Theresa Dursley_

_Cordially invite you to celebrate the joining of_

_Petunia Evans_  
_And_  
_Vernon Dursley_

_In Holy Matriomony._

_21st of December of the year 1976_

_2'o oclock in the afternoon._

Lily lightly scoffed while reading it, throwing the invite onto the table and pulled out the actual letter left in the envelope. It was in her mother's writing, she noted, scanning through the letter quickly.

_Dear Lily-darling,_

_I'm sure you've already seen the invite, love, but please don't get upset. Petunia, of course, wanted to have it sooner, but I've convinced her to wait till you're home, at least for the winter break. I know you two haven't had the best relationship as of late, but she's hoping you'll be a bridesmaid. I've already sent a letter ahead to your headmaster, and he's given permission for you to come home a weekend to try out your dress!_

_I'm so very excited, Lily. Petunia seems so happy! We've recently gone wedding dress shopping, and she looks lovely in shades of pale cream! I can only imagine you in the purest ivory! (Any boys catching your eye this year, darling?)_

At this, Lily imagined her mother smiling coyly, blinking her eyes innocently.

_But I'm looking forward to seeing you soon! I love you very much and miss you! Please behave yourself and bring home those good grades!_

_Love you,_  
_Mum  
_

Lily huffed, tossing the letter onto the table on top the invite. She slouched as she clumsily slammed her elbows on the table, placing her head in her hands.

"She's actually going through with it," she moaned, looking through her fingers at her friends. "She's marrying that.. that.. _Whale_ of a man!" Her friends all looked at her in similar sympathy.

"At least she'll be happy," Emmeline said, however unsure her voice sounded. Ever the optimist.

"That's what mum said," Lily told her, smoothing her hair back, blinking up at the open skied ceiling. "But he's absolutely _horrid_."

"He can't be that bad," Marlene reasoned. Lily stared at her with an eyebrow raised.

"You haven't met him," Lily reminded.

"When's the wedding?" Alice asked. Lily handed her the invitation. "December 21st," Alice read aloud to the group. She glanced back up at Lily directly. "I'm sure she'll be happy you're able to come. That'll be during winter break."

"If Petunia had her way, she'd of married him when she first met him," Lily bemoaned, her low. "Mum made her make me a bridesmaid," she told them. The group groaned in pity. "I'm sure mum had to beg or bribe her somehow."

"Has she even picked out dresses?" Alice asked, handing back the invite. Lily placed it back into the torn envelope and shrugged before answering.

"Mum says they've shopped, but I'm assuming she's already picked out the bridesmaids dresses. She's been planning her own wedding since we were babes. I'm going home for a weekend to have it fitted, I guess."

"When?" Dorcas inquired. "That's not fair. Do you get to miss any classes?"

"I doubt it, but I'm actually not sure. Mum's already gotten permission from Dumbledore apparently."

They left for classes shortly after, departing ways quickly. Lily was glad for the time by herself, brooding as she took her time walking to the dungeons. She wasn't sure how she felt about the whole wedding thing. She surmised she should be somewhat happy for her sister. If the man made her sister happy, she'd just have to accept it. She rolled her eyes heavenward, praying for empathy.

The class was full when she entered it, almost all the seats taken. She felt dread when she realized that it was going to be Slytherins and Gryffindors.

"Miss Evans!" Slughorn boomed from the front of the class, spreading his arms wide. She half wondered if he expected her to run and jump into them.

She repressed a shudder.

"Please, please," he ushered her, rushing towards to her and motioning for her to come forward. "I'll have my best two students sit together!"

She looked at him horrified, quickly realizing who he was referring to, but he didn't catch her look, turning to face the desk that sat in the very front row. He gestured towards the empty chair next to an occupied one. The one that was occupied by a Slytherin.

"Snape," she greeted coolly, but took the seat offered. Professor Slughorn beamed down at them.

"This year shall be very interesting!" he crowed, clapping his hands together excitedly. He turned on his heel and returned to his place behind his desk.

"Indeed," Lily murmured, removing her bag from her shoulder and placing it near her feet. She retrieved her notebook and quill from it, her movements stiff.

She scooted her chair closer to the desk, crossing her hands on her lap, underneath the table.

"Lily," Severus spoke, softly, his voice full of agony. Lily closed her eyes tight in response.

"Don't," she replied quietly, straining to keep her facial expression emotionless, her mind blank. Her chest felt tight.

Thankfully, he didn't try to speak again, turning to stare straight ahead, his hair falling into his face.

_Good_, Lily thought. She'd definitely keep herself busy with notes. She'd have to stop by the parchment store on a Hogsmeade weekend for sure.

-:-

Lily went to the library right after the class, having collected her things quickly and fleeing from the classroom. She collapsed at a table in the back, thinking how grateful she was to have a free period. She folded her arms, laying her head face down into the crook of her elbow and breathed deeply.

"We should lock it somehow," she heard a voice murmur quietly.

"What, with a password or something?" someone else replied. She heard a shushing sound, one that itself wasn't so quiet.

"Someone will hear you," a voice said, one that she recognized as Remus'. She peered up from behind her arms, curious.

"But it'd be smart," she heard him continue, somewhat reluctantly.

"Something clever." A voice she recognized as Pettigrew's.

"Obviously," someone scoffed. Sirius, she acknowledged.

"We'll have to do a little more research," someone commented thoughtfully. James.

"We'll have to do it another time," Remus replied. "I've got to get to herbology." She heard shuffling, presumably as they collected their things to leave. She straightened immediately, grabbing her notes to make herself look busy. She tried to not look guilty at eavesdropping.

"Lily," Remus said, surprised. She watched as James' raised his eyebrows in surprise. The boys themselves looked guilty, as if caught doing something bad.

"Hello, Lily," Sirius, the first to recover, bowed in an overly gentleman way, his dark hair falling into his face. She held back a chuckle as he glanced the rest of his friends and coughed sharply.

"I've got class," Remus said apologetically, waving goodbye as Peter shuffled off behind him.

"I'm making a quick trip to the kitchen," Sirius told James, saluting a farewell to Lily. James nodded a goodbye at his friend, coughing uncomfortably when it was just them alone. His hand went to his hair reflexively, staying there as she remained seated in her chair, her quill poised over an empty page awkwardly.

"Mind if I join you?" he asked, politely, gesturing to the empty chair that sat across from her.

"I won't be very good company, Potter," she replied, flipping through the pages of her notebook as subtle as she could, till she found a page full of notes. She realized it probably didn't work as inconspicuous as she hoped.

He laughed at her answer. "You could never be poor company," he promised, as he slid smoothly into the chair. He ran his hand through his hair again, the messy strands standing up at odd angles.

He tapped his fingers against the table as they sat quietly, albeit uncomfortably.

"Charms," she blurted, growing uneasy in the silence. He looked momentarily thrown off.

"I'm sorry?" he asked, confused. She cleared her throat awkwardly.

"Charms," she repeated. "You know, wave your wand, say a little something. Something most likely Latin."

He rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes. And..?" he prompted, adjusting his body as he leaned closer to her.

"What you were talking about before," she answered, waving her hand to where the boys had been talking - plotting?

He immediately looked defensive and pulled back into a slouch, crossing his arms. "I'm not sure what you're talking about," he answered, dropping his gaze from hers.

She felt embarrassed, not sure why she was even bringing it up. She basically just flat-out admitted she had eavesdropped. She tucked her hair behind her ear.

"A charm would probably work best," she elaborated, but dropped the volume of her voice self-consciously. Her hands played with her quill as she spoke, dropping her gaze onto the long feather. "To hide something, its easy. But if you're trying to secure something so that other people can't see, you can't just use a hex or a curse to repel them. It'd backfire. A charm would be best," she reasoned, her voice trailing off. She glanced through her lashes to find him staring at her thoughtfully.

"I've read a book before," she continued. "Where you can use certain triggers to reveal information or secrets. Passwords, basically. The charm work is fairly simple," she told him.

"Hiding something, Evans?" He asked, a beautiful smirk spreading on his lips. "A diary, perhaps?

She scoffed. "I'm not a 1st year, thank you very much," she inserted condescendingly. He chuckled, raising his hands in surrender.

"See? Knew you wouldn't be bad company," he told her, his smirk growing into a full-blown smile. "Thanks for the tip, Evans."

He stood as she bit back a smile, rolling her eyes. He tapped the table with two fingers, bending towards her as if he had a secret to tell her. Instinctively, she leaned closer in.

"I may have to use you more often," he told her, huskily, a delightfully evil grin on his lips. She scoffed in response, willing herself not to blush at his innuendo. She crossed her arms as she leaned back into her chair.

"Leave, Potter," she told him, trying to sound annoyed. She threw him a glare just in case. His smirk grew in response, but he turned to leave, granting her wishes. She watched him till he disappeared out the doors.

* * *

I know its not as long as the other chapters, but i wanted to get this out before i went to bed! Ill try to make the next one longer. Hope you guys liked it! I feel like i did!

but hhmm... wonder what those boys are working on? ;)

And i REALIZE that petunia didn't get married till lilys 7th year, but meh. its fan fic.

please review! :) and give opinions!


	5. Chapter 5

Lily had only stayed at the library a little longer, her mood adequately lighten by the awkward, but- she couldn't find a word- with James. She wandered the halls, mostly to waste time. She knew lunch must have already started, but she found herself not very hungry. She realized in the back of her mind her friends were probably worried, but she'd see them later.

The rest of the day passed rather quickly. Her afternoon class, once she found she shared with Dorcas and Alice, went by fast. The two girls had given her curious looks when she had slouched into her spot, the question of where she was blatant on their faces. She only shrugged in response and they didn't question her. She was glad, unsure of how to explain her conversation with James in the library.

Dinner rolled around and she was able to meet up with the rest of them, fixing herself a bowl of vegetable soup.

"Where were you at lunch?" Marlene questioned her and she hummed noncommittally in response.

"I wasn't hungry," she explained, slurping the hot liquid from her spoon loudly.

"If you don't eat more, I'm worried you'll disappear," Marlene joked, piling more mashed potatoes onto her own plate. Lily laughed.

"I'm short! Not anorexic," she retorted in defence.

"Meh," Marlene answered back. "Not too much of a difference." Lily laughed, shoving her elbow into her friend. "Hey!" Marlene cried, smearing a fork full of potatoes and gravy on her chin.

"I may be small, but I can still kick your butt," Lily replied, slurping back another spoonful of soup.

"Just wait till Thursday," Marlene grumbled, grabbing a napkin and cleaning off her face. "We'll see who can kick who's ass."

"Guess we will," Lily smirked.

They spent their night similar to the one before, working on homework and lounging in the common room. Lily work ahead on homework, finishing essays that weren't due for a few weeks. When her handwriting began to become illegible, she knew she was done for the night.

"I'm getting antsy," Dorcas admitted, shaking her hair out her ponytail as they got ready for bed. "Thursday's too far away."

"Only one more day," Emmeline said, jumping into her bed.

"That's one day too much," she replied, unhappily, climbing into her bed. She crossed her arms, childishly. Lily laughed at her.

"Sometimes I think it's a bad idea that we ever came up with the game," Lily said, already settled into her bed. Marlene gasped incredulously.

"It was the best idea ever!" she shouted, shaking her head disbelieving. "And I seem to remember that it was one devious redhead that had suggested we play a game of tag," she told her, looking at her pointedly.

"And proposed we used magic," Alice added, helpfully. Her friends looked at Lily, all of them sternly. She raised her hands in surrender.

"Hey," she defended herself. "Who doesn't dream about playing a massive game of tag in a massively, intricate castle?"

"Only we get to," Dorcas said, smugly.

"I can't believe we've gone this long without getting caught," Emmeline mused, wonderingly. Marlene and Lily shared a quick, almost worried glance.

"I'm going to sleep," Lily announced. "I'm beat." The room filled with sounds of agreement, and when she saw all the girls were settled into their beds, she used her wand to extinguish the torches that lined the walls.

As Lily closed her eyes, she only hoped that they hadn't been caught.

-:-

Wednesday passed rather quickly, Lily actually waking up on her own. Emmeline stared at her, surprised, when she had emerged from the bathroom as the other girl's started to get ready. She had chuckled at Em's expression of shock, drying her hair magically and pulling it back into her messy bun.

At breakfast, she fixed herself a plate of eggs and bacon, trying to appease Marlene, who looked at her with a stern glare. She even grabbed a piece of jellied toast to munch on as they made their to Charms. Marlene shrank away from her as Lily animatedly told her about the charms she had read about the evening before.

"Merlin, Lily," she said, disgustedly. "Hasn't your mother ever taught you to not talk with your mouth full?" Lily only replied with a bright, albeit, closed mouthed, smile. She placed the last piece of the toast into her mouth as they sat, clapping her hands together to get rid of the crumbs left behind.

They parted ways as they headed to their separate classes and Lily felt relieved that the History of Magic classroom was in the same wing of the castle. When she entered the classroom, she paused, momentarily confused.

The table she usual sat at was already half occupied, but not by the quiet girl who had joined her yesterday.

_I'll have to ask her name_, Lily promised, idly. She glanced around to look for the girl, but she had already joined another table, talking friendly to her table partner. When the looked back at her own table at the front of the class, she felt a stab of annoyance.

_James._

She realized Remus had taken the seat behind him, a boy she recognized, but wasn't able to recall his name, sitting in the seat beside him. When she took stock of the room, she noticed that the empty seat beside James was the only left. She cleared her throat when she arrived at the table.

"This is my seat," she told him, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear, gesturing with her other hand to the table. She felt a slice of pleasure when he had jumped, obviously startled.

"I know," he replied, turning to face her in his seat. "It's empty," he noted, looking comically quizzical.

"This is _my_ table," she elaborated, narrowing her eyes at him, readjusting the strap of her bag. She heard Remus muffle a chuckle and she snapped her glare towards him, effectively squashing the humor on his face.

"The professor didn't assign tables," James said, obviously feigning confusion.

"Potter," she growled, but was interrupted by the professor himself clearing his voice. She took her seat, grudgingly, her cheeks flushing a faint pink. She glance out the corner of her eye to look at him. She frowned when she noticed a satisfied smirk on his lips.

She pulled out her notes, choosing to ignore him from then on. She paid attention to the professor drone on prudently, taking notes obediently. She'd glance over every so often, her lips turning down sourly, as James obviously dozed off.

She kicked his foot, biting her lip to keep herself from laughing out loud when he jerked awake.

"_Ow_," he mumbled, glaring at her playfully, as he bent down to rub his ankle. "That's not how you play footsie, Evans," he whispered. She rolled her eyes.

"You're in the _front_ row, prick," she hissed at him, leaning back over her notes. He didn't fall back asleep, but lounged back in his chair, twirling his quill through his fingers, expertly. Somehow that made her more peeved.

That class went by slowly. Lily tried to pay attention to her notes, but James kept distracting her. He switched of by playing with his quill, to tapping his fingers on the table lightly. She sighed loudly and he only looked at her innocently, smiling at her.

When he began tapping his fingers again, she snapped. Using her free hand, he reached out and grabs his fingers, pinning them down. His eyebrows shot into his hair. She glared at him, snatching her hand back as if burned.

Surprisingly, for the rest of the class, he kept silent, placing both his hands in front of him on the desk. His expression remained thoughtful, but he seemed to brood.

When the teacher dismissed them, Lily collected her things quickly, shoving her notebook into her bag. James stood beside her, politely waiting. She felt somewhat uneasy as he towered over her. He followed behind her as they left the classroom, his hands stuffed deep into his pockets.

They walked to the Great hall in silence, James purposely slowing his gait to keep pace with her. Lily, surprisingly, felt comfortable in the silence. When they came closer to the dining hall, he spoke.

"I may need your help on that charm," he told her, staring thoughtfully at the ground before them as they walked. She glanced up at him in surprise.

"Um," she said, intelligently. She remembered their conversation from yesterday easily. "I may a little bit more information to help," she reasoned.

"If I tell you, I'll have to kill you," he joked, as the paused in the entryway of the castle, before the doors of the Great hall. She rolled her eyes. "I'm serious," he said, his expression solemn.

"That may cause a problem," she replied, smiling a little. "Well, but I can't honestly say I'll be able to help you much. I know where the book is in the library that can help you, though." He nodded, removing his hand from his pocket to run it through his hair.

"That would work," he shrugged.

"I can bring it to dinner?" she wondered. But he shook his head.

"No, I won't be there. Quidditch practice," he told her. "First of the year. We don't want to slack this year." She nodded, understandingly. She hoped he wouldn't be too hard on the team, or else Marlene would be a complete hag later.

"We'll work something out," she said, shrugging her shoulders. James nodded, gesturing for her to enter into the Great hall, opening the door for her. She murmured a small thank you, finding her group of friends easily. They caught sight of her, their expressions comical as they realized who she was walking with.

"What was _that_?" Marlene asked, completely awed, as she sat down, James continuing further down the table to his own group of friends.

"I'm pretty sure I didn't hear screaming," Dorcas said, looking at the rest of the group, half alarmed, half confused. "Did I? Did you?" she asked Emmeline, who shook her head, seemingly speechless.

"Shut up," she told them, feeling her ears burn. Realizing what had just transpired between the two enemies, herself, she felt thrown off. "What?" she snapped, defensively, when she caught her friends still staring at her in shock, awe, and confusion.

They jumped, awkwardly continuing their conversation, but Lily could see them glance back at her. She stabbed at a piece of chicken, suddenly feeling really, really thrown off. She left them early, finishing her meal quickly, collecting her things and heading to the library.

She found the book easily, left where she had last placed it in the shelves. It was a medium sized book, the cover a dark blue, the binding gold. She ran her hand over the worn title on the front.

Charms: Passwords, Secrets, and You.

"Evans."

She jumped, knocking her hip into the corner of the shelf, almost dropping the book.

"Snape," she greeted, coolly. She stared at him expressionless and his own facial features pinched into something akin to pain. She dropped her gaze, pushing open her bag and dropping the book into it.

"We need to talk," he mumbled, trying to keep her gaze.

"There's nothing to talk about, Snape." A look of pain passed through his eyes as she used his surname. She crossed her arms, indifferently.

"Yes, Lily, there is," he insisted, taking a step closer to her. She automatically took one away.

"Leave me alone," she told him stubbornly, turning to walk away. He grabbed her arm in a last attempt, and her head snapped towards him sharply, her eyes glaring at the offensive hand. "Let me go," she said through clenched teeth. He released her, his face contorting in pain. She wondered briefly how that was possible when he already looked in agony.

"Let me explain," he pleaded.

"Go to_ hell_, Severus," she spat, turning sharply on her heel and hurrying out of the library. She stopped herself from looking back when she pushed the heavy doors open.

-:-

Lily went to bed early that night, feigning a headache. She laid in bed curled, listening as the girls came up one by one, getting themselves ready for bed. When Marlene came in last, she took one glance at Lily, faking sleep, and she looked at Emmeline questioningly.

Emmeline only shrugged in response, raising her hands in the universal meaning of 'I don't know'.

Lily fell asleep shortly after, counting sheep in her head.

Thursday was torture. There was a hum of excitement in the air for the girls. They kept sharing secret glances. There were ready for the game. They spoke in exicted whispers all throughout breakfast before heading to their respective classes.

Lily ignored Severus the entire class. She patted herself on the back, mentally, when she didn't even glance at him. She had kept her head down and worked diligently on the potion Slughorn had assigned them. He had beamed at her when she turned in the vial, shouting to the class, bragging about his star pupil. She took comfort in knowing she got a higher score than Severus had.

Defense was cut short, when a Hufflepuff backfired a spell, sending himself across the room. Professor Donhell had escorted him to the infirmary himself, levitating him through the classroom, the students parting like the red sea itself.

As they waited in the common room, the seconds ticked by slowly. Lily try to distract herself by reading ahead in Charms again.

"I can't concentrate," Dorcas whined, throwing down her quill.

"Only.. Five more hours," Emmeline said, but they groaned at her.

"Five _bloody_ hours!" Marlene cried.

They trickled upstairs, creating the illusion to the rest of the common room- if they even paid attention- that they were, indeed, going to sleep. Lily was the last to go, the clock finally chiming at 11 o'clock. One hour.

"Hey," someone stopped her before she ascended to the girl's dormitories. She turned, acknowledging James. Wordlessly, she reached into her bag, pulled out the library book, and handed it to him.

"The pages that might work best for you, are bookmarked," she told him. She turned quickly on her toe, feeling anticipation bubble into her throat. She skipped up the steps, ignoring him as he called her back. She didn't have time for him.

The Game was to start in t-minus 57 minutes. She grinned to herself in glee.

* * *

I know this probably wasn't the beesst chapter, but i wanted to get it out! blah! so many plans, so many ideas.. bwahaha

But thank you all SO much for reading! i love reading my email to see all the notifications i get. :)

Opinions and reviews appreciated!

and i just wanted to thank Ojjy again! if i never got that email about your review, this story probably would have been forgotten a looott longer.


	6. Chapter 6

When Lily entered the dorm, the girls were quiet, and she couldn't help but smile as she noticed they were all in their own minds, readying themselves.

Preparing themselves for war.

She chuckled mentally, finding humor as the thought crossed her mind. They always told themselves, before each game, that they'd want the game to be serious. To use it as some sort of practice for what was going on out in the real world.

Lily knew the seriousness of what really was going on, that some rogue wizard was playing God, killing the wizards and witches he deemed impure and unworthy of the magic that was bestowed upon them. She knew that she herself, was in danger.

She was the only muggleborn in her group of friends. Dorcas, Emmeline, and Marlene were purebloods, while Alice was half. The had accepted Lily quickly, though, fascinated by her muggle background. They had remained close friends since then.

The girls took their time getting ready, dressing in dark clothes. Lily slid into a pair of black skinny pants, pulling a worn, long sleeved dark grey sweater over her head. The sleeved hung past her hands, the way she liked them too. She voted against a jacket, pulling on her sneakers.

"Can we leave already?" Alice whined, sitting cross legged at the end of her bed. She played with her wand in her hands.

"Not yet," Lily told her, tying up the laces. "The prefects may still be patrolling. But it's the 6th year Hufflepuffs, so they'll probably quit early."

Marlene flipped onto her stomach from where she laid on her bed, resting her chin in her hand. She sighed, loudly, clearing unhappy.

A quarter till, Lily stood from her spot, clearing her throat.

"It's time," she smiled evilly.

-:-

Lily led the way down the stairs, skipping down the stairs lightly.

"Sh!" she snapped back at them, glaring at them in the lowlight, as they neared the bottom.

She pressed herself against the wall, peering out into the empty common room, the only sound come from the fireplace, where the embers crackled. She scanned it quickly, finding no sign of life.

She gestured behind her, waving them forward. They snuck across the Gryffindor living area, holding back giggles from the seriousness of it all.

"_Fuck_!" Lily whispered, loudly, as she banged her shin against a coffee table. She fell to her butt, wrapping her hands around the pain. "Oww," she whined, rubbing her hands furiously over the spot that had been hit.

"Every time!" Marlene staged whispered, tears streaming down her face as she held her stomach from the laughter. Emmeline stooped down to help her up, biting her lip to stop the laughter that clearly wanted to escape from her.

"Ow," she repeated pitifully, pointing her toe out to stretch the muscle. "God damn it," she tried to whisper angrily, but couldn't help but chuckle. "Next time," she murmured, "that thing is going to be blown to smithereens." She pointed her wand at it, testing the thought in her mind.

"Let's go," Dorcas prompted, still laughing quietly. Lily let Marlene lead, the girls following in a line all the way down to the Great hall. They stood in a circle, as tradition.

"Game rules," Lily began, staring at each girl individually. They had gone over the rules each and every time, despite the girls knowing them by heart. "Magic _only_. Only one spell. No cheating by waiting for the tagee to become unfrozen to tag them again. Once your spell hits them, you run. No hiding in one place longer than five minutes, or you will be docked points. No trickery by other spells. We play fair, or you lose.

"If you run into someone, teacher or student, you _must_ notify everyone. If you're seriously injured, you _must_ notify everyone. If you can't continue on with the game, you lose."

"Hear, hear," Marlene murmured, grinning excitedly.

"We will have two hours for the game," Lily continued, shaking her head at her friend, but smiling none the less. "No breaks. Five points per each hit. We meet here at the end of the two hours. If you arrive one second after the clock chimes Two, you're disqualified." At this, the girls grumbled, each obviously haven been burned by the rule.

"Shush," she told them, smirking because she, herself, had never been disqualified on account of being late. "Step forward, please." Marlene came to her first, rolling up her sleeve and revealing her forearm. Lily placed the tip of her wand on the tan skin.

"_Reor et praesto tessera_," she murmured, watching as lettering bloomed across the skin in her own handwriting, the characters burning a low, golden color. Dorcas stepped up behind Marlene and she repeated the spell, holding her wand to the same spot she had Marlene. Alice and Emmeline followed suit.

When they returned to their own spots in the circle, Lily cast the spell on herself, following the scrawl appear on her arm, the lines strangely warm on her skin. She never got used to the feeling, but she had created the spell herself. It was easier than anything else she had found, and the light of the spell could be easily hidden under any fabric.

"No shooting any spells until the five minute hold releases, giving us enough time to get far enough from each other."

"We should be serious this time," Alice interrupted, her thoughts escaping. She looked at the ground when she explained. "What Professor Donahell's been teaching us- no, not the actual spells- but that a dark wizard's not going to go easy on us," she said. "We should play as if this is a serious game. What, with everything's that's been going on…" she trailed off, and they glanced awkwardly at Lily.

Lily felt stung for a moment, realizing they were all pointing out her flaw- her bloodline. They had received the daily news- the attacks and destruction that seemed to show up on headlines more and more. But she knew what Alice had suggested was a good idea. Practice, almost. She nodded to herself.

"It's a good idea, Alice," she said, softly. "We already take this game serious," she started, and they all nodded their heads vigorously. "But we can definitely push it. I'm okay with not holding back."

"Let's do this," Emmeline chimed in. "Before we start wasting time," she joked, lightening the mood.

"Alright," Lily grinned, rolling up her sleeve to start the countdown. They had timed it perfectly, just moments before Midnight. The witching hour. She grinned again.

"10..." she read to them. The poised themselves as they turned to run their own ways.

_9.. 8.. 7.. 6.._

She turned her back on them, staying in her place, keeping her voice quiet, but loud enough for them to hear her.

_5.. 4.. 3.. 2.. 1.._

"_Go_!" she shouted, bolting down the corridor that she knew led towards the kitchens. She knew they still had the five minute hold, but she wanted to get away as far as possible, not wanting to be a sitting duck. She turned left, leading her further down into the castle, but away from the dungeons. She clung to wand as it was her lifeline, trying to keep her breathe shallow, pushing her legs harder.

She slowed as she neared the kitchen entrance, keeping close to the wall. She knew the Hufflepuff common room was near somewhere to there, so she made sure to keep quiet, running her hand along the wall as she slowed to a walk. She glanced behind her ever so often to check for movement. Her arm heated, not uncomfortably, to warn her that the five minutes were up.

Her eyes adjusted to the dark, quickly, as she kept moving along, rounding the corner, passing the portrait to the kitchens. She paused at a fork in the corridor, measuring her options. A right led her towards the dungeons, towards the Potions classes. The left led back to the Great hall's entrance.

Going to the dungeons, she could follow a passage way that led her clear to the other side of the castle. Taking a left, she could take a hallway that led off towards the Quad. Making a last minute decision, she went left, knowing she could sneak through the Quad and take the back way up to the astronomy tower.

Near there, she knew she'd find someone. She planned ways of ambush. Her walk turned into a light jog, but she made sure to keep her footsteps light. She came to the entrance out into the Quad quickly and she slowed again. She strained her ears to listen. Satisfied, she stepped further into the doorway.

"_Cesso_!" and the spell hit her hard, its caster closer than Lily realized. She stood frozen, feeling a growl in the back of her throat. Emmeline stepped into her eyesight, grinning happily at her. She fluttered her fingers in farewell, before dashing off.

Lily counted down the seconds in her head till she unfroze, angry at herself for being hit so early in the game. She darted off, keeping close to the castle's outer wall, rounding back up to the entrance. She slipped through the doors stealthily, her eyes taking everything in, her heart renewed by a wave of fresh determination.

She caught sight of Dorcas' hair as she turned down the corridor Lily had taken in the beginning. She trailed behind her, sticking close to the wall, but picking up her pace. When she stood only a few yards away, she raised her wand.

"_Cesso_," she spoke, feeling no need to shout it. She nodded as the spell hit its target and turned quickly on her heel to go back to the grand stairs. She decided she'd cover the 2nd floor next. Marlene always liked to hang around the girl's bathroom.

The corridor she slid through was empty, keeping her back against the wall, as she approached another turn. She crouched low, peeking around the corner. Her eyes widened dramatically as her vision was blocked by a pair of legs. She heard a gasp above her, herself so surprised she fell back onto her bum. Her eyes connected with Alice's.

"_Cesso_!" She did shout this time, panicked, her spell hitting her friend right in the stomach. She froze and Lily scrambled awkwardly up before darting around her frozen friend, down the hallway. It opened up to the moving staircases. She sighed in frustration, remembering why she hated these stairs so much when the one she stepped onto shifted. She scrambled up them, halting at the last one, where it dropped off into nothing below her. She groaned, feeling uneasy.

When she glanced back, Alice had just gotten to the base of them.

"_Cesso_!" Alice shot out, and Lily ducked just in time, clutching to a stone baluster. She straightened quickly, cursing as the staircase kept moving. Making a stupid and foolish decision.

She jumped, aiming for a landing that was below her. Her stomach flew to her throat, but she landed, trying to duck and roll. Her knees slammed into the ground, and somehow she slide onto her side, scraping her hip. She looked up dazedly, to the staircase she had been on. Alice was hanging over the side of it, as the stairs themselves halted to a stop. She was staring at her worriedly, but Lily smiled in response, standing up slowly. Her wand was still her hand, thankfully, not broken.

Once Alice knew Lily was okay, she shot another spell towards her and Lily inelegantly jumped back, slamming her back into the doorway. She turned quickly, darting down the hallway. She winced as her knees ached, making it hard to run smoothly. She knew they'd be a nasty black and blue tomorrow.

The next hour she spent moving around the castle. She had a run in with Dorcas, again, but managed to freeze her, again. She smiled when she knew Dorcas would be sore about it tomorrow. Her and Emmeline had squared off in one of the third floor corridors', Emmeline once again hitting Lily successfully. She had yet to meet up with Marlene and hadn't seen Alice since the stairwells. Time was flying quickly, as she watched the scores on her arm change often.

She paused to catch her breath on the sixth floor, hiding in the crook of the Ancient Runes' classroom entrance. She leaned back against the cool wall, resting her hands behind her head. She quickly catalogued her injuries- but found nothing too severe. Not wanting to be caught taking a 'break', she left the hiding spot, glancing both ways before sliding out against the wall.

They only had an half hour left of the game left, when Lily had checked last, deciding to test out the 7th floor before heading back to the main floor, towards the Great Hall. It had many hallways, including the one that led back to the Gryffindor Common room. She took a hallway that took the long way around, one she knew forked back to the common room or to stairs that led her below.

She walked briskly, but kept her ears opened. She quickened her pace when felt paranoia claw at the edge of her mind. She tried to stay calm, knowing a clear mind was a smart mind.

She kept her wand at the ready, rounding a corner silently. She paused when she heard a sound echo around the turn she had come from. She waited. Nothing. Curious, she peeked around the corner. She gasped, when Marlene spotted her the exact time she spotted her friend. She took off, Marlene taking the chase.

She had a good start, but she could hear both of their footsteps echo off the walls. She couldn't help but panic.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

Her knees ached worse than before, but she wouldn't let Marlene catch her. She randomly remembered the deal they had made a few days ago. She would not let Marlene copy her notes!

"I'll get you!" Marlene called, and Lily felt relieved when it had echoed, meaning she was further ahead then she realized.

"Not me _or_ my notes!" She replied, pushing herself harder. She turned off sharply down a hallway, one that led to the Room of Requirements. She played with the thought of hiding in there, but knew that'd be cheating. Plus, she'd have to waste time walking pass the damn thing three times.

She looked back before she turned another corner, her hair now loose and slapping her in the face. She didn't see any sign of Marlene as she kept running, but that didn't mean she wasn't close.

"Oof!"

All thought process stopped in her mind as she slammed into a wall. Not a wall, she noticed. A body. She gasped, horrified. She swore her heart stopped.

"What the hell?"

Almost numbly, she looked up into a pair of hazel eyes behind a pair of glasses.

Oh, _fuck_.

She gasped, struggling to take in air. He grasped her arms, obviously alarmed.

"_Evans_?" he realized, shaking her lightly. "Are you okay? Why were you running? Jesus, Evans, breathe!"

She couldn't understand what he was saying, but her mind was blind with panic.

_Oh, god. Oh, god. Oh, god.._

She didn't know what to do. She was caught. They were caught. James, of all people, found out. She could hear Marlene's footsteps echoing down the hallway. Not even recognizing that she moved, she latched onto James' arm, clearly shocking him.

_Oh, god. Oh, god._

"Lily?" he asked, his voice strained and full of panic now. "Someone's chasing you-" she cut him off by pulling him behind her, leading him further down the hall. She tried to move faster, but he was resisting. Throwing open a tapestry quickly, she pushed him in front of her, shoving him into the small alcove.

"Hey!" he complained.

"Shut _up_!" she snarled, clapping a hand over his mouth. She used her free hand to throw the tapestry closed. She waited. She listened.

Marlene's footsteps ran passed them, slowing down. Lily could almost hear the wheels churning in her mind, wondering which way the redhead would have gone. Lily closed her eyes and prayed. Mindlessly, she dropped her head onto James' shoulder. Well, arm. Even though he stood stooped over her, he was still taller than her. She kept her hand over his mouth.

And by some miracle of God, he didn't try to speak.

She listened as Marlene dashed off, her footsteps slowly growing more quiet, till they were non-existent.

She breathed in a shaky breath, relaxing. James mumbled something from under her hand, his breath hot on her palm. When she realized how close they stood- almost flush against each other, she stepped back. Her back hit the curve of the alcove, immediately.

"Um, I can explain?" she said, almost helplessly. She couldn't see his face and she was glad.

"Damn straight, you better explain," he demanded, his voice confused, annoyed, and bewildered all at once.

"Well, ah, um."

"Wait, wait," he interrupted her, reaching up to grab her elbow tightly. "That was _you_?"

"What?" she asked, completely confused. She jumped when her arm heated, a warning that the game was ending soon. "Bloody Christ!" She threw open the tapestry, but James grabbed her hand. He chuckled.

"Dirty bird, indeed," he murmured and she looked at him as if he just had declared his undying-and lustful- love for Slughorn.

"I have to go," she told him, trying to shake off his hand, but he held on tighter.

"Who were you running from?" he asked, seriously. He leaned down and stared straight into her eyes.

"I have to go!" she cried again, unable to think properly. He dropped her hand and she bolted, taking off at full sprint.

_Oh, god. Oh, god._

How would she explain this?

* * *

I REALLY hope you guys liked this! I may not update for a few days. (It's my weekend!) But i would really appreciate opinions!

and reviews would be nice. :)  
Let me know what you think or what you'd like to see! im basically making this up as i go, with a vague, veery vague plotline. very unprofessional, i know.

but this chapter was long! again, hoped you guys liked it!

Oh! and do you guys think i need a beta? or someone to proofread? i probably miss a whole hell of a lot.


	7. Chapter 7

When the group of girls met in the Entrance Hall, they were all out of breath. Lily stood in the circle, hand just below her ribs to try to relieve the stitch in her side. She let out a shaky breath.

"Alright there, Lily?" Emmeline asked.

"Oh, yes, quite alright," she answered, still out of breath. Marlene gave her a strange look, mouthing something that looked like 'What the hell is wrong with you?' but Lily could really only guess. She had never been good at lip reading.

"Yes!" Dorcas cried, pulling Marlene's attention away from her. "I won! I won! I won!" she sang, throwing her fist in the air.

"Second," Emmeline noted, smiling happily. "It's been a while for me to be that highly ranked! I'm happy."

"Third," Lily read, looking at the stats on the materialized chart. She nodded, satisfied. Considering.

"Least I beat Mckinnon," Alice smiled, sticking her tongue out at the girl.

"Oh, shut it," Marlene groused, clearly looking unhappy. "If Lily hadn't sent me out on a wild goose chase, I would've been able to get more done."

"Don't be a sore loser," Emmeline admonished, but couldn't keep the victorious grin from her lips.

"Twats," Marlene murmured, crossing her arms over her chest. "Alright, yes, yes, I lost. Ha, ha. Now let's just head up to the dormitories and forget this night."

"Any horrific spills tonight, Lily?" Alice asked, as they made their way up to the Gryffindor tower. Lily had remained silent, speechless and unsure of how to tell her friends that she had been caught.. by Potter.

"Oh, heh, no, nothing too bad," she waved vaguely at her knees, which were covered in small cuts and forming bruises. Alice hissed in sympathy for her, shaking her head. Lily fell quiet again, causing Alice to pick up conversation with Emmeline.

"Mar," Lily hissed, quietly, but her friend was too wrapped up in her own thoughts. Lily quickened her pace, close enough to where she was able to jab Marlene from behind.

"Ow!" she cried, immediately stopping, causing Lily to run into her. "What the bloody hell was that for?"

"Mar, _sh," _she hushed her, the rest of the group turning to see the commotion. Lily dropped to the floor, improvising, and played with her shoelaces.

"Sorry! I just, shoelaces were untied. Kinda fell into Mar," she smiled sheepishly. They looked at her skeptically, but rolled their eyes. They began walking again, leaving her behind to tie her shoes.

"No, Mar," she spoke, panicking as her friend also turned to leave. Desperate, she reached out and grabbed her ankle, causing the tall brunette to stumble and almost fall.

"Lily! What the fuck!"

"Mar, seriously, _shut up_ and quite being so damn loud!"

Marlene huffed, annoyed. "Seriously? Did you just stop me to gloat that you beat me and I won't be able to copy your notes?"

"No, come on, Marlene, no." Lily remained on the corridor floor, feeling uneasy.

"Well, what is it, then?"

"Potter caught me," she blurted, waving her hands around as she rambled. "I ran into him when I was running from you, and I pushed him into an alcove and hid, and I panicked, and I-"

Marlene slid to the floor in front of Lily, grabbing her hands that flew around frantically. "Lily, _Lily_, calm down. Breathe." Though, she herself looked uneasy, too. "Okay, okay, we'll figure it out. It'll be okay. He won't turn us in."

"He really only recognized me, but he didn't recognize your voice," Lily continued to ramble, her hands still captive in Marlene's tight grip.

"Well, that's good!" Marlene said, cheerfully. "He'll just use you running around in the middle of the night like a maniac as blackmail," she joked lightly.

Lily responded by giving her a dark look.

"Sheesh, I was only joking," Marlene defended, letting go of Lily's hand. "But really, all you have to do is go talk to him.. and just say.. Oh, I dunno, you were doing patrols, or something?"

"Mar, he's friends with Remus, another Prefect. You think he wouldn't just ask him if I were telling the truth?"

"Oh, right. Well, I mean, you could always ask him what he was doing out this late? I mean, he's not even a Prefect."

Lily mulled it over, taking Marlene's hand as she helped her to stand. "I guess that could work... I mean, he can't use it against me if I use it against him, first."

"Um, sure," Marlene answered. "Or you could just maybe, I dunno, have a mutual agreement not to say anything about it to anyone and leave it be?"

Lily looked at her as if she were crazy and scoffed loudly.

"Yeah, you're right," Marlene agreed and the two carried on alone towards their tower.

-:-

The morning dawned early, and too quickly, in Lily's opinion, but she was the first to rise, unable to sleep. She rolled out of bed, her sore joints making her feel older than 16. She stretched languidly, checking on the other girls. They slept soundly, no doubt tired from being up so late.

Grabbing a clean uniform, she walked into the bathroom, turning on the shower and letting it heat up while she undressed and dropped her dirty clothes into a pile on the counter. She showered quickly, washing her face and hair thoroughly, rubbing at her eyes when they felt drowsy.

She slide into her clean underwear, pulling her clean shirt and skirt on. Wrapping her hair in a towel, she exited the bathroom, grabbing her night clothes. She was careful to shut the door quietly behind her, mindful of her sleeping friends.

Using her wand to dry her hair fully, she pulled it into a half ponytail and put on her usual small amount of makeup. Searching through her trunk for a clean pair of socks, she grinned happily as she found them, but winced as she shut the trunk a little too loud.

"Huh! Wahs that?" Marlene mumbled, sitting up in her bed.

"Shsh, go back to sleep," Lily placated her. "It's too early to be awake."

"Okay, back to sleep," Marlene agreed, lying back and rolling onto her side. Lily noticed how easily she was able to fall back asleep with a little envy.

She slid her socks on, rolling them up to her knees where she felt them most comfortable. Grabbing her book bag, though her only class of the day was Arithmacy, she still folded an extra notebook and inkwell into the large pocket,. She shouldered it and slid on her shoes, heading down to the common area.

She cursed as she slid on one of the last steps, losing her balance. She cursed again as she lost the grip on her bag, her books and inkwell tumbling out.

"Merlin's grey beard!" she exclaimed, the inkwell rolling down the rest of the steps and shattering, causing black ink to spray across the floor. "Oh, come on, you bloody-"

"Excuse me?"

Her eyebrows rose drastically, startled by the group of boys sitting in the common area. Alone, she quickly noted. They sat at the main area, an incredibly large parchment laid out in front of them.

Remus was the one to speak, but James and Sirius sat beside him, snickering.

"Oh, well, excuse _me_," she sniffed, feeling her cheeks burn, realizing they must have watched as she stumbled and dropped her things. She knelt to pick up her belongings.

"Let me get that," James said from beside her and she started, not noticing he had jumped up and stooped next to her so quickly. He waved his wand and murmured the cleaning charm, the ink disappearing. They both stood at the same time, nearly knocking heads.

"So, uh, what are you gents working on?" she asked, adjusting the strap of her bag, feeling too nervous not to talk. James stared at her with a strange look on his face. She chose to ignore it, sidestepping him and going to stand behind Remus.

Sirius causally folded the paper over onto itself, successfully hiding it from her, and smiled winningly at her. She noticed with some satisfaction that the book she loaned James sat on the table next to them.

"Just extra school work," he replied, unnecessarily winking. Like James did to her, she gave them a strange look, lightly scoffing.

"Right, I hope that's going good," she said, lightly. She felt James come to stand behind her and he must of mouthed something behind her, as all their eyes went to him. She stood there awkwardly, lightly tapping on the back of the couch.

Turning, she brought up the nerve to look at James. "So, um, Potter, mind if I talk to you just for a moment?" She didn't paused long enough for him to give an answer, but instead reached up and grabbed his elbow. With some difficulty, she pulled him along, towards the portrait hole.

"I guess I'll be back, lads!" He called, and she could only imagine him waggling his eyebrows suggestively. She pinched him just in case. "Ow!" he whined, but still allowed her to drag him along.

"Alright, Alright, Evans," he said, as the portrait shut behind him. He easily pulled his arm from her grasp, causing her to make a noise. "What do you need?"

She coughed, uncomfortably. Simultaneously, she thought of how easy it was to get him away from his friends and that, well, she actually did not think she'd be talking to him so soon. She had no idea what to say. He shifted, continuing to stare at her until she spoke.

"Well, uh, I hope that the book is helping..." she started, immediately regretting speaking. She had no idea how to confront him!

"Yes... it is."

"Right, great, that's brilliant."

"..."

"Um.."

He sighed, shaking his head. "Alright, Evans, what were you doing out last night?"

"I could ask you the same thing!" she blurted. He gave her the strange look again, his head tilting slightly to the left. "No, wait, no, really, I could be asking you the same thing."

"Not quite any of your business, is it?"

She huffed, realizing she couldn't dance around the subject, but unsure of how to handle it. "Look, we were both out past curfew; no one finds out, no harm done," she hinted, hoping he'd take the truce.

"But, see," he spoke, bringing a finger up to his lips in contemplation. "The difference between you and I out past curfew, is that I was just talking a nice, late night stroll... where as- if I remember correctly- you were being hunted down by someone. I feel like there's a slight contrast between the two."

"Okay.." she said, speaking between her teeth. "It was just a misunderstanding. All worked out. No one harmed."

"But see, also," he continued. "After I was pushed into a rather small niche by a rather... eccentric redhead, she left without a word of explanation, so I can't honestly say I know that there wasn't any harm done."

"Oh, bleeding Merlin!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms up. "Look, I don't poke around what you and your mates do," she said, waving her arm towards the door. "Quit being a prat."

"You _insult _what my friends and I do! Just the bloody same," he pointed out, running a hand through his hair.

"Completely different," Lily replied, nonchalant. He scoffed, letting out a disbelieving laugh.

They both paused, sizing the other up.

"Look, whatever it is you're doing, it's not safe," James said.

"It was just a one time quarrel," she improvised.

"No, it wasn't. Evans, as much as I know you can't resist me, it was _me_ you ran into the other night. But I'm pretty sure that wasn't on purpose."

"I have no idea what you're talking about," she answered, honestly. She knew she ran into him on the stairs, when he had caught her, but that would make no sense. "Look, I just wanted to- OH!"

He nodded, smirking, as he watched recognition dawn on her face.

"Oh, my god," she moaned, running her hand over her face. "Oh, dear god." His hazel eyes sparkled mischievously.

"Look," he started, "I know it's you and your friends. I'm not quite sure what you're-"

"Nope," she interrupted. "You don't. You don't need to know. There's nothing _to_ know."

"It didn't seem like it."

"Potter, you've nothing to worry about. Now, just go ahead and run along to-"

This time he interrupted her. "I want to know what you're doing."

"Sorry, can't," she smiled, patronizingly. "Promised to secrecy, just like you and your 'marauders'." He smiled, his expression smug.

The smile slid of her face.

"So," he drawled, nodding his head, pondering. She didn't like his face at this moment. Or him, in general. "You're essentially saying that you are hiding something."

Her mouth opened and closed several times before she spoke. "Now, I didn't say that. I didn't say anything about it!"

"No, of course you didn't, but you insinuated it."

She let out a frustrated noise, feeling as if she wanted to stomp her foot.

"Just let it _be."_

"Well, now I feel as if I can't," he answered her. "You've definitely got me interested."

"Potter. Please, just forget about it."

"I don't believe I can."

"Give me that book back, then."

"Oh, now don't be so childish. It's a library book. It's not yours."

"Potter! Bloody Christ! Quit being so insufferable!"

"Not until you tell me what you're up to."

"We're not up to anything!" Lily cried, fighting the urge to curse him. Her hand went to her hip, where her wand rested inside the waist band of her skirt. He noticed the familiar movements and backed away, holding his hands up in surrender.

"That night, when you first ran into me, it was Marlene shooting a spell at you. What spell was that? It hit Peter, but it wasn't a curse."

"No," she said, tartly. "It was not a curse. See? Nothing dangerous. Nothing to worried about." She began to turn to leave. "Now, just drop it."

"It's a game, isn't it? Some sort of game." She didn't turn back as he said it, but she paused. He grinned widely. "I want in."

"No," she spoke, but didn't face him. He looked at the back of her head, at the dark red hair falling down her back, unable to see her face.

"No, it's not a game, or no, I can't?"

"Just no."

"Oh, come on, Evans."

She turned to give him an cold, angry look. He only replied by smiling brightly at her. She let out another frustrated sound, turning to walk down the corridor, away from him.

"I'll wear you down, Evans!" he shouted after her.

"Shut up!" she shouted back, before turning the corner. He grinned, heading back into the common area.

-:-

"I knew I'd find you here," Marlene said, as she walked up behind Lily. She sat down at the table next to her in the back of the library. She placed her bag next to her on the floor and placed a folded up napkin in front of Lily. "I brought you a pastry."

"Thanks," Lily replied, pulling it closer to her and unfolding it neatly. She picked at it.

"You aren't down at breakfast," Marlene prompted. Lily shook her head, her expression slightly guilty and pitiful. "And you must of woken up very, very early," Marlene noted.

Lily nodded this time, her eyes on the crumbling pastry. She bit her lip and brought her eyes to meet Marlene's.

"What happened, Lily?" Marlene asked, her expression slightly skeptical.

"Um," she answered.

"I'm going to go ahead... and assume you spoke to James?"

Lily nodded again, feeling very small.

"And I'm going to also assume... it didn't quite go as planned."

Lily shook her head. "He knows, Mar," she told her, leaning in to speak quietly. "He knows, because _he_ was the one I ran into."

"Last night, yeah, I know," Marlene replied, leaning back into her chair. She let out a loud sigh.

"No, Marlene, the first game, he was the one I ran into! Behind the painting."

"_Oh_."

"Yeah," Lily replied, resting her head in her hands. The pastry was now destroyed, the crumbs spread out in front of her. "So... he knows," Lily repeated.

"He knows," Marlene said, wonderingly. "Well, what do we do?"

"He wants in the Game."

"_No_," her dark haired friend gasped, slightly disbelieving. Lily only nodded in response. "Did he say anything else?"

"No, just that he wanted in," Lily stated, unhappily.

"Well, then... Maybe we should let him?"

"What!" Lily exclaimed, clearly shocked. The librarian shushed them, narrowing her eyes dangerously. "Um, _what_?" Lily repeated, lowering her voice substantially. "You want us to what?"

"I mean, really, what's there to lose?"

"Have you gone crazy, Mckinnon?"Lily asked seriously.

"No, Lily, hear me out! If we let them join, it'll raise the stakes. I mean, we really do have this _entire_ castle to ourselves."

Lily looked scandalized. "Marlene!" The librarian shushed them again. "You can't mean that." But Marlene nodded insistently, the wheels in her mind turning.

"Come on, Lily, it'd be _fun_. And alright, admit it, it gets a _tiny_ bit boring when you play with the same group for years."

"Marlene.."

"Just think it over, Lily," she pleaded. "This could be really good! It's the marauders. You know they'd bring a challenge to the game."

Lily couldn't deny what her friend was saying, but she didn't look fully convinced. Marlene pulled out the puppy dog eyes.

"Oh, stop it, you twat," Lily said, begrudgingly. "I'll think about it," she admitted.

"Yes! Oh, this'll be brilliant!"

The librarian seemed to appear out of nowhere, balking at the mess on the table from the pastry.

"Out!" she ordered, clearly angry. "Now!"

The girls fleed, stifling their laughter as they ran from the library. When they were safely in the corridor, they paused to catch their breath. When their eyes met, they shared another laugh.

"You know," Marlene paused to chuckle. "You think she would love you with how much time you spend in there."

Lily shrugged, laughing lightly. "I think it's because I _do_ spend too much time in there." When their laughter died down and they started their way towards the classrooms, Lily spoke.

"How do you suspect we tell the girls, if, and I do mean _if,_ the marauders would be joining our game? How'd do you think they'd react?"

"I have no idea, to be honest," Marlene replied, raising her eyes towards the ceiling in thought. "I think Dorcas would be the one who's most upset by it. More players to beat and all that." Lily nodded in agreement, knowing that the group of boys would bring something to the Game that would definitely make it more.. interesting.

"You want them to join," Marlene stated, her lips pulling into a scary smile.

"I didn't say that!"

"No, but I can totally see you plotting out plans and strategies! It's all over your face!"

"Okay, so, maybe I am _thinking_ about it."

Marlene let out a loud whoop, catching the attention of many students.

"I said _thinking_!" Lily cried, slapping her hand over her own eyes, exasperated. "Let's talk to the rest of the group first, okay? Before we make any decisions."

Marlene nodded happily, her hair bouncing about her shoulders. "You get to tell them, though," Marlene stated, grinning evilly.

"I-what! That's just not fair!"

"You're the one who got caught," Marlene pointed out.

"You're such a witch."

"Why, thank you."

* * *

Alright, i know it's just a lot of talking, but i hope you really like it so far! Just got inspiration this weekend.

And i do have to apologize for the long wait!

Please Review!


	8. Chapter 8

The rest of Friday and Saturday passed quickly, leaving Lily feeling a little desperate. Marlene kept giving her prompting looks, when they sat in their normal group in the back of the common room.

"Tell them," she'd either mouth or whisper, her eyes expectant.

Lily would only reply by shaking her head vehemently, her hair flying into her face. She remained uncharacteristically quiet, receiving quizzical looks by the rest of her friends.

"Something wrong?" Alice had asked her, the only two in the dormitory Saturday afternoon. Lily had remained on her bed, laying on her stomach, catching up on Charms work. Or, well, more correctly, working ahead on Charms work.

Alice brushed out her hair, getting ready for a small date with Frank, when she had thrown the question out randomly.

Lily almost choked on her quill that she had been chewing on. "Um, no, nothing's wrong." She smiled brightly.

"Are you sure?" Alice insisted, turning in her chair at her vanity.

"Completely," Lily answered, trying to look at her as earnest as she possibly could. "Just, you know... working on homework here."

"O-kay.." but her friend still looked at her dubiously. When Alice left, Lily slammed her school book shut and grabbed a pillow to shout a rather long string of profanities into.

It had made her feel better. Only a little bit, though.

Lily had also managed to avoid James, quickly excusing herself from the group as soon as they made eye contact. She realized he still wanted an answer, moving to stand to, most likely to try and talk to her.

She would flee to the confinement of her dorm, taking the stairs two at a time.

Pleasantly, she thought it was a nice work out, feeling the burning of muscles each and every time. She assumed it'd get easier, eventually.

But, on Sunday, when Marlene had full on confronted her, she knew she couldn't run anymore.

"Alright, Lily, enough mucking about," her best friend stated, grabbing her arm as the group made to go down to lunch. "Just tell them," she pleaded, shaking Lily's arm to annoy her into actually doing it. "Please, please," she shook her arm harder.

"I said I would! Didn't I?" she asked, incredulous.

"Yes, yes, you did. But it's been two days and you haven't said anything!"

"Weell, I_ will_," Lily stressed, trying to remove her arm from her friends grip. "And I also said we'd _discuss_ it first, before making any rash decisions."

Marlene scoffed, finally dropping the red head's arm. "Rash? Really, Lily? This is the best idea!"

Lily's only response was giving her a look. Marlene smiled brightly, grabbing Lily's arm again, to loop it through hers. "Let us feast," she said, pulling Lily along rather reluctantly. "Then we shall discuss!"

She walked with Marlene down in the common area, arms still joined. Most of the students were already down at lunch, leaving the large area almost empty.

"Can't we just go to the kitchens?" Lily whined.

"Nope," Marlene replied, shortly. Inconveniently tightening the grip on Lily's arm.

"Please?"

"Nope," she repeated.

They reached the Great Hall shortly after, finding their group of friends at the end table, suspiciously away from the other students. Lily paused, apprehensive.

"Come on, now," Marlene said, tugging on her arm. She sat down next to Dorcas, pulling Lily down to the seat next to her. Emmeline and Alice smiled a greeting from across the table. From the corner of her eye, she saw Marlene turn slightly, moving her hand.

"What was that?" she asked her, giving her a stern look.

"Nothing," Marlene replied, picture of innocence.

"Were you just gesturing something?"

"No."

Lily gave her a look, knowing that after being friends with the girl beside her for nearly six years, she knew when she was being devious. "Marlene," she said, warning clear in her voice. "Who were you looking at?"

"No one," Marlene replied, moving her hand in front of her. "Just had a cramp, that's all," she explained, wiggling her fingers for show.

"Right..."

"So," Emmeline interrupted, pouring herself a glass of juice. "Anything you want to talk about, Lily?"

"Me?"

"Yes, you," Dorcas answered for her, though her eyes remained on her plate. Lily felt her apprehensiveness turn to suspicious, looking at her friends.

They all looked at her with pleasant smiles.

"Well, I guess, I do have something I want to- There!" she exclaimed to Marlene, rather loudly. The girl beside her jumped, twisting back to face Lily, her hands folded neatly in her lap.

"You did it again!" Lily accused, pointing her finger at her friend.

"No, no, I didn't," Marlene replied, still innocent as ever. Lily scoffed.

"Yes, you did! It was a thumbs up!"

This time Marlene scoffed, but cleared her throat uncomfortably. "I did not."

"You did! Who were you looking at?" she questioned, leaning forward to look down the table, eyes searching. Unsurprisingly, she found a group of boys at the other end of the table, all casually looking in different directions, faces blank. Lily gasped, hitting Marlene on the shoulder rather hard.

"Ow!"

"You _didn't_," Lily cried, letting her head fall into her heads. She groaned loudly. "You all already know?" she asked, her voice muffled.

She heard rustling and knew they were all nodding their heads. She raised her eyes to look at Marlene, glaring.

"I regret nothing," her friend stated, though, obviously too afraid to meet eye contact.

"Only, Marlene, I will kill you."

"I'm okay with it," Dorcas said aloud, taking a loud bite of a baby carrot.

"What? You _are_?" Lily asked, whipping her head around to stare at her friend. Dorcas shrugged, nodding her head. She considered the carrot in her hand.

"I do think it'd be fun," she said, thoughtfully. From across the table, Emmeline and Alice nodded their heads in agreement.

"I don't know- you guys discussed this without me?" She felt slightly satisfied as her friends looked about, guilty looks on their faces. "Oh, come on, you're bleeding kidding me. I don't think it's a good idea!"

She was taken back as her friends let out multiple words of disagreements.

"Come on, Lily, you know it's a brilliant idea!" Marlene cried.

"It'd cause too much trouble," she pointed out, shaking her head. Annoyingly, she felt her temper flare.

"I think it would be really cool," Emmeline said, her expression sincere. Lily let out a sigh, shaking her head again.

"We could just come up with some extra, small rules, if we needed to," Alice reasoned.

"But see!" Lily struggling to keep her volume down. "We shouldn't_ have _to!"_  
_

"Well, we don't necessarily need to," Dorcas supplied.

Lily opened and closed her mouth several times and Marlene placed a hand on her arm, noticing the redhead getting upset.

"But it's _our _game," Lily stated, her voice quiet.

Marlene looked slightly remorseful. "It wouldn't change that much," she tried.

"I'm going to the kitchens," Lily said, bitterly. She stood, shaking off Marlene's hand.

"Oh, please, Lily, don't be upset," Emmeline pleaded.

"It's fine," Lily told him, tucking her hair behind her ear as she looked at them. "Just let me think." She turned and left the Great Hall, hearing her friends call out to her.

She walked alone towards the kitchens, not feeling as hungry as before.

"Lily?"

She turned, surprised to find Snape walking behind her. "Please, leave me alone," she said, turning to continue to walk towards the kitchens. She still heard his footsteps behind her. She sighed, annoyed and stopped to face him.

"Look, I'm not really in the mood-"

"Please, Lily, I just wanted to apologize," he interrupted her. "For last year."

"Okay, I forgive you, Snape," she replied, rolling her eyes. "Now just leave me alone, please?"

"You don't mean that," he replied, walking to stop in front of her.

"Um," she said, looking dubious. "No, really, I do just want to be left alone."

He smiled humorously, shaking his head. "No, I mean you forgiving me. Lily, it didn't sound like you meant it.."

She kept her expression neutral. "Severus, I really do forgive you," she said, honestly.

"Then why won't you talk to me? Why can't it be like it used to be?"

"Because, _you_ meant it, Severus. What you said, in front of everyone last year. You meant it."

"No, I really didn't. It just came out, I was just so angry," he tried to explain, but she smiled sadly.

"I know you were, but you wouldn't even had said that word if you didn't believe in its meaning."

"Lily, please.." His voice pained.

"Snape," and she paused, wincing as a hurt look crossed his features. "I do forgive you, but we just can't be friends anymore. We've grown apart."

"Look, I know what I did was wrong, but we just can't stop being friends."

"Yes, we can."

"Lily, I'm _begging_ you." He reached for her hand, but she stepped back.

"Problem here?" Sirius asked, coming from around the corner. She half expected James to be with him, but Sirius remained alone.

Lily immediately recognized the furious and disgusted look on Snape's face. She felt like rolling her eyes, but knew it wouldn't only make him angrier. "We're fine, Sirius. Snape was just about to leave."

When Snape's eyes met hers, he sent all of the pain that he felt in that one look. She turned away, trying not to feel guilty. All three of them stood awkwardly; Snape waiting for Lily to say something, Sirius waiting for Snape to leave, and Lily waiting for both of them to continue on their own merry way.

"Alright, better get going then, yeah?" Sirius said, scratching his neck. He stood comfortably though, quickly entertaining the idea of annoying Snape.

"No, actually, _Black_," Snape spoke, his voice angry, clearly taking the bait. "Evans and I were not done talking. Now, if you were to so kindly _leave_."

"Actually, Snape, I think we _were_ done talking." Lily shifted under his gaze, but did not back down.

"You heard the lady, Snape," Sirius said, circling around him lazily to stand next to Lily. "She's done talking."

They stared each other down, Sirius; cool and collected, Snape; cold and angry. Lily rolled her eyes, but couldn't help but feel a sliver of gratefulness towards Sirius.

Neither looked like they were going to back down, so Lily decided to step in. However much she enjoyed the situation, she would rather not see it turn sour. "Sirius, would you mind accompanying me?"

"Of course," he said immediately. From beside her, he offered his arm and she took it politely.

"Lily, I wasn't-"

"Oh, dear Merlin! Shove off, Snape! For fuck's sake!" she cried, though her arm was still in Sirius' she half turned to shout at him, finally having it. "Leave it _be_," she pleaded, giving him a final look.

Sirius had a more shocked look on his face than Snape, who immediately backed away, knowing the extent of her temper. He turned silently and stalked off in the opposite direction.

Sirius whistled low, clearly impressed by her. "Can I introduce you to my mother? She'd enjoy your company."

"I'm hoping that's a compliment," she joked, but couldn't bring herself to fully smile.

"With that mouth of yours, it definitely is." He waggled her eyebrows suggestively and she laughed, slightly embarrassed.

"Thank you?"

"You're welcome. And just wondering, where are we headed?" he inquired, as the walked on.

"The kitchens," Lily supplied, not quite sure she kept her arm linked with his, but enjoyed the company none the less.

"Ah, yes. You know where it is?"

She looked at him, incredulous. "Of course I do," she answered. "Why wouldn't I?"

"Oh, no, just not many people know where it's located," he shrugged.

"You definitely stumble into many things in this castle."

"Couldn't be more true," he agreed. They walked in a somewhat strange companionable silence till they reached the portrait with fruit. "Mind if I join you? I could do for an extra crumpet."

"Sure," Lily said, ducking past him as he tickled the pear and opened the door for her. The house elves greeted them animatedly, offering platefuls of various delicacies. Lily picked a strawberry danish, sitting at the table that represented the Gryffindor table. Sirius actually grabbed a few different pastries, collecting them onto a napkin and sat in front of her.

He took a bite of one, chewing thoughtfully. "If you don't want us join, I'd understand," he said, after he had finished chewing.

She groaned, picking at her danish. "Please, I don't want to talk about it."

"But I'm serious," they both gave each other a look, rolling their eyes at the too obvious joke. "If you don't want us to join, you really don't have to."

She gave him a wary look, taking a small bite of her danish. "Yeah, I know, but everyone seems to think it's a brilliant idea."

"Well, that's 'cause it is," he replied, grinning as she gave him a dark look. "You can't deny it."

"No," she groused, resting her chin on her hand. "But it doesn't mean I agree it's a smart idea. I still have to think it over."

He nodded understandingly and they paused to take a few more bites. "All this excitement, though, McKinnon explained a little bit of it to us," he told her, but immediately seemed to regret it as she began to look peeved. He back peddled. "Only very, very little bit," he said, trying to save face.

Lily scoffed. "Black, it's bleeding Marlene. Can she ever keep her face shut?"

Sirius agreed, his smile mirthless. "She does seem to talk a bit, yeah?" They laughed together, Lily knowing her as her best friend, Sirius knowing her as his teammate.

"But you know you can't keep us marauders away from trouble, yeah?"

"That's what I'm afraid of." Lily smiled uneasily. "Thanks, though, for that. Earlier. With Snape."

"No problem, Evans. He's a slimy git."

"Yes, yes, I know."

"I never knew what you saw-" but he paused as she held up a hand to stop him. He snapped his mouth shut at the look on her face. "Won't mention it again," he said, miming zipping his lips and throwing away the 'key'.

They left the kitchens shortly after, heading back to the Gryffindor tower. Like he did before, he held the door open for her and she thanked him quietly, stepping through the entrance. As soon as her friends saw her, they waved her over, rather frantically.

Sighing, she headed over to them, waving a goodbye to Sirius as he made his way up to the boys' dormitory. When she reached them, they looked a mixture of guilt and regret.

"Look, Lily, I really am sorry," Marlene spoke first. "I just, got overexcited by the idea of it and I couldn't help mentioning it to Alice- who thought it was a great idea- and Emmeline really liked it, too! It just kind of snowballed from there.."

"It's okay."

"And we were at practice, and I couldn't help but kinda mentioning it to James, who waved over Sirius and-"

"Mar! I said it was okay," Lily huffed, plopping into her normal seat beside her. Marlene still gave her an apologetic look. Lily grinned lightly, showing that she was, at least, alright for now.

"We're sorry to have ganged up on you like that," Emmeline said then. "We didn't really think about it."

"It's fine," Lily repeated. She rolled her eyes, but smiled affectionately at them. "I just.. it hit me that I guess things really do have to change." She shrugged. "But fine, they can join."

"_No_," Marlene replied, disbelieving. She looked at the other girls in the group. "Did she just say what I think she said?" Lily punched in the arm, rolling her eyes._  
_

"Shut up," she said, laughing as Marlene whined at the 'pain'. "I said fine! Don't make me regret it."

When the girls let out a collective cheer, they gained the rest of the common area's attention. "You're making me regret it," Lily said, feeling her cheeks flush at the attention, but the girls were too excited to care. They chattered happily, planning.

Lily sat back, rubbing at her face, feeling as if this may have been the wrong decision.

-:-

Later that night, after the group had come back from dinner and finished the last remaining homework, Lily sat alone, the girls already heading upstairs to prepare for bed. Lily sat back comfortably, Potions book in her lap, and sighed in content as she flipped the page.

She was jostled as someone fell into the space next to her.

"Alright there, Evans?" James asked her, grinning widely. He laid back, folding his hands on his stomach and stretching his long legs in front of him.

"Just fine," she answered, pulling her book closer to herself. "Anything I can help you with?"

"Plenty of things," he answered and she had to glance over her book, as he had answered so earnestly it had taken her aback. His expression remained genuine, until a smile split across his lips. She huffed, returning her gaze back her book. "So..." he said, as she didn't say anything.

She remained silent, trying to concentrate on reading.

He hummed silently to himself, clearly patient.

"Your group can join," she told him, quietly. She didn't look at him, eyes narrowed at the print in front of her. She could picture the smug look on his face.

"Brilliant!" he exclaimed. "When do we start? What are the rules? Come on, tell me."

"Potter, Christ, calm down," she said, lightly glaring over at him. His smile did not falter. "We haven't even gone over the guidelines. We don't even know how this will work."

"Oh, it will," he replied, clearly excited. He sat up and clapped his hands together. "When do we get started?"

"Potter, no one else is here to discuss this."

"So?"

"We can't just plan it without them!"

"We can't?"

"Oh, dear Merlin," she huffed, exasperated. She sat up, too, looking him in the eye. "We can't make plans without the others. Calm yourself down." She snapped her book shut and went to stand, but he lightly grabbed her arm.

"Are you okay with this?" He asked, seriously. She gave him a strange look, confused for a moment.

"Um, yes?"

"It's just that, Sirius mentioned something earlier..."

"Oh, right," she waved him off, standing. "Nope, everything's fine." She felt a jab of annoyance towards Sirius. Without saying goodnight, she made her way towards the stairs.

"Wait!" James called, following behind her closely. "I mean, you can't give me anything to go on?"

She had already begun to ascend the stairs, but paused, slowing turning. "Yeah, actually. No playing dirty," she told him. He waggled his eyes suggestively and she scoffed. "Not like that, you git. I _meant_ no serious threats. No _wands to throats_," she said, glaring.

"Oh, right, of course," he replied, grinning sheepishly as he recalled when she had run into them. "I didn't know who you were," he defended himself, stuffing his hands into his pockets.

"Still."

"Right, but I guess I might need a little definition to what 'playing dirty' might mean."

"Seriously?"

He shrugged innocently, leaning against the corner of the stairwell. "I mean, well, could this be considered-"

And as he spoke, three things happened simultaneously. First, he raised his foot onto the first step, grinning evilly. Second, the stairwell turned into a slide as per instructed by the Hogwarts' Founding Four, whenever a male tried to ascend to the girls' dormitories. Third, as the stairs disappeared beneath her feet, leaving the terrible feeling of your heart going straight into your throat, she let out a shocked noise as she fell.

And well, actually a fourth thing happened. James caught her, stooped low enough to where his face was very close to hers, a hand behind her back and the other underneath her thighs.

"Dirty?" he finished, grinning like the Cheshire Cat.

-:-

James returned his dorm, stilling grinning wildly as he rubbed his cheek from where she had slapped him. He could not help but chuckle as she had indignantly shouted "Yes!" before bringing her hand to his cheek.

Rather hard, he noted, absently.

"You alright, mate?" Sirius asked him, noticing James' rubbing at his very red cheek.

"Brilliant," was his response.

* * *

Alright, I did have one reviewer kind of imply they hoped it wouldn't go in a dark direction. Now, i have to admit, there maay be some small instances where it does turn a little, well, not sad, but not dark either!

But i really hope you readers are enjoying it so far! I forgot how much i love to write!

So sorry to keep you all previous readers waiting so long for me to update!


	9. Chapter 9

As Monday morning much too bright and much too early, Lily rolled over in her bed, blinking against the bright morning sun that filtered in through the windows. She heard Marlene groan loudly from her own bed, clearly not wanting to wake up.

"Up you get!" called Emmeline, stepping out from the bathroom. "Wake up, you brutes!"

Lily laughed as Dorcas snarled an insult back at their friend. Dorcas threw her covers off rather violently, grabbing clean clothes, and heading into the vacant bathroom.

Lily snuggled back into her covers as Emmeline turned her eyes on her, gaze warning.

"Dorcas is in the shower," said Lily, her smile complacent. Emmeline rolled her eyes.

"Alright, but I'm giving you five more minutes. That's it."

"Thank you, mummy," she replied, though her voice was muffled as she hid her face under her comforter.

"How can it already be Monday?" Alice asked, sitting up in her bed to rub her eyes; her short, light brown hair ruffled. No one answered her, everyone evidently thinking the same thing.

Lily though, didn't mind Monday mornings. Charms were her first class, followed by Defense. It couldn't be that bad of a day. She kicked off her sheets, the cool air hitting her bare legs causing her to shiver. Rolling off the bed onto her feet, she stretched, walking over to nudge Marlene out of bed.

"Leave me 'lone," Marlene mumbled, waving her hand to try and bat at Lily.

"You weren't even up that late!"

"Still, more sleep."

Lily let her be, feeling a little wicked. Maybe making her rush to get ready was a small payback, and a little childish, but Lily felt she deserved it. She collected her clean clothes, sitting on her bed, and waited patiently for Dorcas to come out of the bathroom. When she stepped out, Lily jumped out and ran for it, beating Alice to the door. Childlike, she stuck her tongue out, slamming the door shut before the sparks that Alice sent her way actually hit her.

She showered quickly, scrubbing her skin and hair clean, before rinsing off all of the soap. Turning off the tap, she toweled herself dry, wrapping her hair up into the towel and pulled on her clean underwear, skirt, and shirt, buttoning it up.

"Done!" she called, stepping out of the bathroom, laughing as Marlene and Alice fought for the bathroom next. Alice won, leaving Marlene to huff angrily and stomp back to her bed, throwing herself onto it, and pulling the covers back over herself.

"You'll be late!" Lily scolded lightly, unwrapping the towel from around her head and brushing out her wet hair.

"I'm not going to class without showering," Marlene replied, stubbornly. She glared at Lily balefully from behind her back.

"Early bird gets the worm!" Emmeline sang, sitting at her vanity, already ready for the day.

"I don't even understand how that applies," said Marlene, turning her glare to their blonde friend. Emmeline shrugged, choosing to shift her gaze somewhere else.

Lily laughed, grabbing her wand from her nightstand and waving it over her hair, deciding to dry it straight today. She brushed it out again, the red hair falling down her back to her elbows. She left it down, applying her make up quickly, and moving to slide her socks on, slipping her feet into her flats. Alice vacated the bathroom and Marlene trudged into the bathroom last, rubbing her tired eyes.

Lily tucked her shirt into her skirt last, inserting her wand into the waist band before slipping a sweater over her head. She stretched again, feeling tired but trying to keep her spirits up.

"Ready?" Emmeline asked her, standing from her seat. Lily noticed Dorcas and Alice were already gone, set off towards the Great Hall for breakfast.

"Should we wait for Marlene?"

"She'll be a bit. Like usual, no doubt."

"Alright, then," said Lily, grabbing her bag from beside her trunk, stuffing her Charms book, notes, and an extra quill into it. She let Emmeline lead her, trying to keep her footsteps light and easy. Darkly, she remembered last night, feeling annoyance towards the stairs that she now walked on.

The common area was slightly full, mostly full of students from the younger years, but Lily spotted the four boys from her own year sitting nearby, next to the windows.

"Hello, boys!" Emmeline greeted warmly.

They all chorused a 'morning' back to the both of them. With slight satisfaction, Lily noticed a light pink stain on James' cheek. With annoyance, though, she noticed he smiled brightly at her, wearing the slightly faded slap mark upon his cheek like a badge of honor. She felt like scoffing, but held it in.

"Hello, Lily," said James, his eyes bright.

"'Ello," she acknowledged, tugging on Emmeline's elbow to keep her moving. They left the common room, Lily not looking back once.

They met Dorcas and Alice at the Gryffindor table, their plates already half empty.

"Marlene still getting ready?" Alice inquired, taking a bite of a biscuit.

"Yep," Lily replied, sitting beside Dorcas and reaching for the bowl of jam. She spread it on a piece of toast, then reached for the large carafe of coffee, pouring herself a cup. Alice passed the sugar and Lily smiled her thanks.

Marlene arrived shortly after, looking somewhat disheveled and accompanied by the four boys that Lily really hoped would not decide to sit with them. She stared down at her cup in concentration, mentally willing them to separate and take their normal spots further down the table.

She closed her eyes in disappointment, as the five newcomers sat around her.

"Lily, pass the sugar, please?" Remus asked from in front of her. Obediently, since she had no problem with Remus, she handed him the small jar of sugar, smiling politely.

"Could you pass the jam, please?" This time James asked her, his voice very close to her ear. She refrained from shivering, but felt annoyance flair within her, considering the jam was right in front her her, meaning it was right next to him. Choosing to not look at him, she picked up the jar, waving it in the air in his general direction.

"Thanks," he replied, his tone dry, as he grabbed the jar from her hand. She tried not to smile in amusement.

"Think the second week will be as easy as the first?" Dorcas asked, pouring herself another glass of juice. To Lily's surprise, Marlene snorted, her mouth still full of food.

"Doubt it," Marlene smirked, after she had swallowed her food. "My brother told me it's damn near impossible."

"The second week?" Peter Pettigrew asked, raising his fork to his mouth.

"No," Marlene scoffed. "Sixth year, you dolt." Peter looked chastised, turning his face towards his plate.

"I didn't know you had a brother," Sirius spoke, his mouth slightly full, but his expression curious.

"Oh," she dismissed. "He graduated eight years ago, you most likely wouldn't know him."

"Well, things may have changed in eight years," Emmeline pointed out, looking on the bright side.

"We still have all the same professors," Lily pointed out, sipping her coffee. "Something tells me much hasn't changed."

"Defense teacher changes each year," Dorcas supplied.

"At least Dumbledore seems to get professors who know what they're doing," James mused, scooping more eggs onto his plate.

"Until they repeat the same lessons," Lily noted. "It can get a little boring." She caught Sirius and James share a look, clearly not minding not having to do extra work.

"Almost ready, Lily?" Emmeline asked her, already gathering her things. Lily nodded, taking one more bit of her toast, before slinging her own bag over her shoulder and standing. The back of her heel caught on the bench and her knee slammed into the underneath of the table. She almost stumbled, but James grabbed her elbow, steadying her.

"Thanks," she muttered, almost begrudgingly, feeling her cheeks burn lightly. "Sorry," she spoke to Dorcas, her hitting the table having knocked over her friend's goblet.

"S'okay, I'm used to it," she replied, using her wand to clean up the spilled juice. Luckily, none had spilled on her. Lily smiled weakly, turning to join Emmeline as they made their way to Charms.

Class itself, wasn't anything special, Lily noted, with slight sadness. Charms was her favorite and that days' class only consisted of note-taking. Flitwick assigned them a fourteen inch essay on concealment charms that was due by next class. Lily knew it would be easy enough, but she had to admit to herself she'd rather actually practice the charms themselves, rather than just research them.

"Guess this year may not be as easy as we hoped," Emmeline remarked, as they collected their things.

"I don't mind," Lily said, earnestly. Emmeline smiled, shaking her head slightly.

They parted ways, Emmeline heading towards the dungeons for Potions and Lily headed towards the Defense Against the Arts tower, trying to hurry. By the time she made it to the classroom, she seemed to be one of the last students to come in. She slid into her spot next to Marlene, exhaling loudly.

Marlene looked amused. "You really need to maintain some sort of exercising routine over the summer, Lily."

"I could've helped with that," James spoke up from behind them. Lily turned, glaring darkly. He leaned back, raising his hands in surrender, something she noted he did quite often. Sirius chuckled from beside him as she turned back around, reaching into her bag and pulling out her book.

Lily huffed, speaking to Marlene in a lower tone. "Well, I mostly stayed in my room the entire summer. Neighborhood seemed pretty crowded this summer," she said, glowering.

"Snape, I'm assuming?"

"Your assumption is correct."

"Ah."

"Mhm."

The class quieted down as Professor Donhell entered, making his way to the front of the classroom. Lily caught Alice's eye from across the room, Frank and her seated two tables away. Lily smiled warmly, before returning her eyes to the Professor. He started the class as he had last time, clearing his throat unnecessarily.

"If I've been given the correct lesson plans from the previous years, I am hoping that you have been correctly taught the proper way to Duel?" He paused, waiting for the students to nod their heads obediently before continuing on. "I want you to, for the most part, forget what you have learned." He paused again, and for a fraction of a moment, Lily thought he seemed disappointed by the lack of reaction from the class.

Have a student forget about schoolwork they've learned in previous years? No problem.

"There's a war going on," he spoke again, changing tactic. He began to pace, his cloak billowing behind him. "The headmaster has employed me in the hopes to teach you things that will help you once you've come of age and are out in the world. Dueling is something that can't be taught. In a fight, there is no proper way to duel. Your opponent will play dirty, using tricks and curses to win."

Lily thought that was common knowledge, thinking of the decoys and ambushes that she and her friends used in the Game.

"There's a Dark Wizard who has come to power, gaining more and more followers each passing day. The headlines and the stories in the Prophet are not the only fights going on." He stopped in his pacing, turning towards the class. "You may put away your books and quills," he commanded abruptly. The sound of books shutting and being put away filled the classroom. Lily caught Marlene's eye and they shared an excited look.

"Stand," he commanded again, his voice gravelly. When all of the students obeyed, he used his wand to move the desks. Their legs scraped loudly against the floor as they lined up against the classroom walls. The mix of Hufflepuffs and Gryffindors in the room stood in their place, waiting for his next command.

"Who in this classroom is Muggleborn?"

The question itself was not spoken with disgust, but Lily immediately felt a flare of loathing fill her chest. Lily saw out of the corner of her eye as Marlene turned her head to look at her. Most of the students swayed, open mouthed. The tall professor stared at them steadily.

Lily was in no way ashamed of her background, but she felt wary as she raised her own hand, aware that only three out of the almost thirty students in the classroom followed her actions. She felt angry, feeling as if the professor was branding them. She let her hand fall to her side, fist clenched, as Professor Donhell nodded in satisfaction.

"As Muggleborns, you are at an disadvantage and an advantage," he continued. "Most wizards will believe you weak, as you have not grown up around Magic, with Magic in your veins, and with not as much knowledge. They will not think of you as a challenge."

Lily waited for him to continue, to elaborate on his obvious opinion. He did not. She looked at Marlene, feeling her stomach clench in anger. Marlene looked back at her, her expression blank, almost as if she were surprised by the topic. As Marlene noticed the oncoming emotions in Lily's eyes, her features turned wary.

"Is that the advantage then, sir?" Lily spoke, knowing she sounded vexed. The professor turned his eyes onto her, as he leaned back onto his own desk, crossing his arms. "That _most_ wizards believe Muggleborns to not know as much magic as they do? When it's possible that they know the same, if not more?"

The students teetered, still speechless. Lily heard James exhale from behind her, as Marlene stood tense.

Donhell seemed to mull over her retort, letting his gaze run over the faces of the students.

"I believe, Miss.."

"Evans," Lily supplied, her voice cold.

"Miss Evans, that what you're saying could be correct."

"Could be?" said Lily.

"Yes, Miss Evans, could be, seeing as it really depends on if a Muggleborn Wizard or Witch is able to learn as much as a Pureblood."

Lily held in a growl, trying to keep her temper in check. He was, still, a professor, after all. But she did not have to like him. She chose not to reply, fearing that she would say something she may regret saying to a Professor.

Donhell, however, smiled, and straightened, pushing himself from the desk. "Everyone move from the middle. I thought we could use today's class to practice dueling. Maybe one at a time."

Again, the students followed his instructions obediently, leaving a large circle in the middle of the classroom. No one spoke, a feel of unease obvious in the air. Marlene touched Lily's arm, as James and Sirius sent her an empathetic look. Lily's jaw clenched, avoiding her friends' gazes.

"Now," Donhell started, pacing the circle the students had created as he surveyed them. "Do we have any volunteers?"

The classroom remained silent, students sharing looks of apprehension. As if her temper controlled her, she moved to step forward.

Marlene grabbed her arm tightly. "Lily," she voice low, warning.

It seemed, though, that their professor caught movement from the corner of his eye. "Ah, of course, Miss Evans," Donhell said, flourishing his arms wide and beckoning her forward. She reached for her wand, pulling it out from her waistband as she stepped forward into the middle of the circle. She felt her peers' gaze burn into her.

Donhell only smiled, bowing deeply and prepared his stance. Lily mimicked his actions.

And it all happened fairly quickly.

"_Expelliarmus_!" he shouted, but Lily dodged it, twirling on the spot quickly.

"_Impedimenta_!" she threw at him, but he dodged it just as easily. He threw a charm at her, but she did not catch what he said. She dropped to her knees rather clumsily, the spell narrowly missing her.

"_Carpe retractum_!" he bellowed, and a long, thin rope shot from his wand and began to wrap around her quickly.

"_Relashio_!" she said the spell quickly, cutting the rope cleanly. Her heart thrummed with excitement, feeling adrenaline coursing through her veins. "_Fumos_!" she shot at him, black smoke enveloping her opponent.

"_Partis_ _Temporus_," she heard him mutter, as he stepped through the screen on smoke. "_Silencio!"_

The spell hit her directly in the chest, knocking the wind and words out of her. She floundered for a moment as he sent another curse at her. She was able to dodge it, throwing up a non-verbal shield charm. She smiled triumphantly as his spell bounced off and ricocheted.

He charged her, throwing another spell at her that, again, ricocheted.

"_Stupefy!"_ she thought with all her might. The spell shot from her wand, nearly hitting him. As he ducked and rolled, she held her own wand to her throat. "_Finite!"_ She clear her throat to make sound, making sure the spell was terminated.

"_Expelliarmus!"_ he tried again, but she was easily able to deflect it.

She thought quickly, trying to dodge another curse that torn open her sleeve. She hissed, feeling pain as the spell actually cut her skin. The students around them were awed, gasping as each of them dodged or cast another spell. The professor's eyes held a glint that made her feel slightly worried.

"_Ascendio!" _she cried, tossing the spell at him. Either he was surprised at the simplicity of the spell, or the stupidity of it, but it worked anyways. The charm struck his leg, throwing it back and causing him to fall forward. "_Stup-" _she begun, but he cut her off from his place on the floor.

"_Everte Statum!_" he roared, his wand pointed directly at her. She had no time to cast a shield, the force of his spell hitting her full in the stomach. She was thrown back, feeling her back connect with the concrete wall as her head snapped back. She saw stars as she collapsed, her legs weakened and no longer working as she tried to move them. Pieces of shattered wood lay about her and she wondered briefly if she had caused the table to break into pieces or if it was a spell.

Everyone stood speechless as the Professor struggled to stand, grinning triumphantly. He straightened his cloak and took a step towards her, limping. Instinctively, though she could not see straight and her head throbbed, she raised her wand.

_"Expelliarmus,"_ she gasped, the immense effort it took to keep her arm straight causing a shot of incredible pain to run up her spine. The spell, however, hit it's intended target. And though she was in no shape to catch it, she felt a great amount of pleasure fill her as she heard the distinct clatter of a wand landing somewhere near her feet.

Silence fell. Professor Donhell stood speechless, though, his body was shaken. No one moved.

"Muggleborn," Lily gasped, trying to keep her voice steady. He glared down at her and it took all of her strength to stare back. The professor limped forward and retrieved his wand from the ground.

"Class dismissed," he growled. Still, no one moved, seemingly frozen. "CLASS DISMISSED!" he roared, breaking the spell. Lily felt her head fall back, her vision swimming. He spun and retreated into his office.

Marlene was at her side, her hands flying over Lily's body. "Fucking Merlin's beard," she whispered, tearfully. Lily chuckled, but it sounded completely wrong to her own ears.

"Muggleborn," she repeated, pulling her lips into a proud smile.

"Can you stand?" James spoke, as he crouched over her, his voice shaking. Lily was only able to move her head a little, towards his voice.

"No," she whispered, her smile falling as her vision swam further. Black dots sprinkled across her eyes.

"What the hell were you thinking?" he asked, furiously. He slipped his hands underneath her thighs and behind her back. Tenderly, he tried to lift her, but she cried out loudly.

"Prongs," Sirius' voice came from somewhere above her. "Her back, she can't-"

"I know," James voice snapped and she felt his arms around her loosen and disappear. She let her eyes close, feeling nauseated by the black spots that began to swirl in front of her.

"No, Lily," Marlene spoke this time. "Don't close your eyes. We need to get you to the Hospital Wing!" She felt a warm hand pat at her cheek. It took her a moment to open her eyes again, feeling as if they were glued shut.

"I won't," she tried to say, but her throat wouldn't let her speak.

"We'll have to use magic to get her there." Sirius.

"I know, but we can't use it unless she's laying back." James.

"We have to fucking do something!" Marlene.

"Lily?" said James, very close to her ear. She hummed in response. "We're going to have to move you. We can't get you to the Hospital Wing otherwise."

"Okay," she whispered, turning her eyes to look at him. She felt her eyes fill with tears as she stared at him, his expression pained. Both Sirius and James came to either of her sides and she watched as they stared at each other, placing their hands underneath her shoulders and her bum. She watched as they counted and went to move her with practice movements. She screamed in response, feeling pain shoot up her spine.

"Please, please," she begged, though, she wasn't sure what for. She was now laying flat on her back, the three of them standing above her. She felt her eyes begin to roll as the pain worsened.

"Lily, please, keep your eyes open," Marlene pleaded.

"_Mobilicorpus_," James said, waving his wand over her. She was lifted into the air, feeling as if she was laying on an invisible plank. From there, she drifted in and out of consciousness, her eyes rolling as she tried to follow the lines of the walls in the corridor as James carried her. Marlene struggled to keep up with them and Lily could recognize her small sobs. Sirius trailed only a few short steps behind them.

"Poppy!" James shouted, after Marlene and Sirius slammed open the doors. He levitated her onto the nearest bed and Lily tried not to let a whimper escape. "Poppy!" James shouted again, his voice louder.

"Oh, Potter, what is it this- Miss Evans!" The school's nurse cried, immediately running forward, pulling out her wand. "What _happened?_" she stuttered.

No one answered her. Lily was only able to stare up at her, her eyes filled with tears that she stubbornly tried to keep from falling. Pomfrey examined her, using her wand to scan down her body. The three students stayed around Lily's bed as the nurse did her examination.

"Please, leave us," Pomfrey commanded, not looking up from her work.

"What is it?" Marlene asked, stubbornly staying in her spot.

"Leave," said Pomfrey, giving them a strict look. They followed orders, watching as Pomfrey waved her wand and pulled the curtains around herself and Lily.

Only a little later, which felt like hours, Pomfrey emerged from the Hospital Wing, her expression grim but smiling none the less.

"Is she okay?" James was the first to ask, the three students looking at her expectantly. Pomfrey rubbed her brow and let out a sigh.

"She'll be fine. At least three of her vertebrae were cracked. It was affecting her spinal cord." At this, the nurse paused, clearly upset. "She was in immense pain. I couldn't risk her going unconscious because of the concussion and she-" she broke off, using a hand to fan herself, feeling herself tear up.

"Can we see her?" Marlene asked, quietly. Wordlessly, Madam Pomfrey nodded, granting them access into the Hospital Wing. They rushed in, filing in around Lily's bed.

The girl herself was laying on her side, her red hair fanned out around her. She gave them a watery smile, hands tucked under her head.

"I gave her a little something," Pomfrey informed them quietly. "So she wouldn't feel too much pain." The healer conjured three chairs for them, Marlene taking the seat closest to Lily's head, James taking the next seat, and Sirius took the last.

"Muggleborn," Lily repeated for a third time. She smiled again at them proudly, her expression less pained than before. Marlene chuckled despite herself.

"Yes, yes, we know you're a Muggleborn. AND that you disarmed a teacher," Marlene replied, though she smiled. She grabbed one of Lily's hands, holding onto it tightly.

James and Sirius remained silent, watching over her.

"He was being a git," Lily informed them stoutly, nodding her head fractionally. James scoffed loudly as Sirius let out a bark of a laugh. Lily smiled, obviously pleased she had made them laugh.

"He was absolutely beyond a git, that bastard," James said, trying to push down the fury he felt towards Donhell. Lily giggled as he cursed and he couldn't help but smile.

"You were superb," Sirius told her quietly, his smile filled with his normal amount of mirth, if not more.

"Why thank you," she answered, smiling widely.

"The place was a mess after you were done with it," Sirius continued. "I don't think Donhell thought you'd put up such a fight, you little spitfire."

Lily smiled proudly again and felt a sliver of satisfaction.

"But don't do anything like that again!" Marlene scolded, glaring at Sirius. Lily giggled again as she caught James glaring at him, too.

But James, however sour his expression, looked liked he agreed with Sirius. "If you're anything like that in this 'game' that you play, I feel like we may have to watch our backs."

"You betchya," Lily replied, slightly giggling, causing Marlene to chuckle.

"That's Lily. Able to take you down in one easy shot, but also managing to hurt herself at the same time."

They talked quietly for another few minutes, giving their own accounts of the 'duel', before Pomfrey shooed them out, stating that Lily needed her rest. They left her, though James and Marlene quite reluctantly.

"You'll see me soon," Lily promised them, waving a small goodbye as the left through the doors. Her eyes slid closed and she welcomed sleep.

-:-

She woke hours later, keeping her eyes shut as the setting sun filtered into the room. Her side ached from lying it on for too long, but she found her spine stiff and wasn't able to gather the will to roll over. Her head pounded.

"I think she's waking up!" someone whispered. _Emmeline_, Lily thought. She popped open one eye to confirm it. She opened both, surprised to find four pairs of concerned eyes staring down at her. _  
_

"Hello," Lily greeted, smiling softly. Each girl let out their own individual cheer. "I'm fine, I'm fine!" Lily cried in laughter, as they threw her various questions.

"Don't go starting fights with Professors again!" Alice scolded. "Frank and Remus had to drag me from the room, I was so distraught!"

"What were you even thinking?" Emmeline asked, her tone a touch of disbelief.

"I wish I was there," Dorcas muttered, holding one of Lily's hands. Lily laughed, shaking her head.

"You do not!" Alice cried, clearly shaken from the duel. She crossed her arms and Lily fought the urge to get annoyed as she saw her friend get tearful. "He threw you back like a rag doll!"

"You hit that wall so hard, so fast, I didn't even know what was happening!" Marlene murmured, staring straight at Lily's face.

"You've seen me hurt before," Lily argued. "Loads of times!"

"Nothing like _that_," Marlene answered, stubbornly. Lily made a noncommittal noise, rolling her eyes.

"I'm fine," she promised. "I just need more practice, apparently," she tried to joke, but Marlene glared at her.

The doors of the infirmary opened and in filed the four marauders, James leading the group.

"We brought you some pastries," Sirius told her, raising a cloth napkin, tied shut, but clearly over flowing with different delicacies. She looked at him in humor and he only grinned. "I wasn't sure what you liked," he explained.

"How are you feeling?" James asked her, standing behind Marlene, hands stuffed deep in his pants pockets. His hair was sticking up in tufts, no doubt from the countless time he ran his hands through his hair.

"Bit sore," she admitted. She tried to move again, to roll over, but cursed softly.

"What's wrong?" Marlene asked immediately, scooting closer.

"My side hurts from laying on it for too long," Lily answered, wryly. "Back's still a little stiff." She tried to move again, but Marlene let out a noise, standing to help her. James rounded to the other side of the bed, as Marlene helped Lily to roll over.

"Here," he said, quietly, and Lily felt his hands on her back, gently guiding her back, as Marlene pushed softly against her shoulder. With the help, Lily rolled onto her back.

"Ouch," she whispered, wincing again and closing her eyes against the discomfort. She smiled gratefully, feeling much more comfortable than before.

"Pomfrey wants to keep you for a few days," Emmeline told her. "But we convinced her to only keep you overnight, knowing how much you don't like to sleep here."

"How often do you come here, Evans?" Sirius asked, curiously.

"She can't stay away," Marlene stated, dryly. She leaned back in her chair, crossing her arms. "I think Lily likes this place more than she lets on."

"Oh, absolutely," Lily said sarcastically.

"What even started the duel?" Dorcas asked.

"Donhell made a jab at Muggleborns," James answered her, leaning back against the small night stand beside Lily's bed.

"And Lily, being the stubborn one, wanted to prove him wrong?" Emmeline ventured. Lily shot her a look, glaring lightly.

"Someone needed to," Remus spoke up. He looked very solemn, his arms crossed. He stared down at Lily, contemplative. "I'm not quite sure what point he was trying to make."

"I think his point was very clear," James said, his voice derisive.

"Well, I, for one, was very entertained by the look on his face after a _Muggleborn_ disarmed him," Sirius said, beaming down at Lily. Lily returned a tongue between teeth smile, feeling flattered.

Emmeline lowered her voice, her eyes still on Lily. "Maybe we should put off the Game for a while..."

"No!" Lily replied fervently. "If anything, I want to play another soon." Marlene looked uneasy, ready to argue. Lily shot her a look, this time one of pleading. Marlene nodded, resigned.

"We could probably get together sometime this week to discuss it," Marlene wondered aloud. She looked around at the rather large group. "I'm not sure where we should meet though.. Common room might be a bit dangerous."

"I know just the place," James answered her, his smile somewhat devious.

"What in the- Not this many visitors are allowed at once!" Madam Pomfrey cried, emerging from her office. "Miss Evans shouldn't be awake!"

She shooed them out and Lily laughed loudly as Sirius darted around her to grab one more pastry. "Out, out!" the healer ordered. Her friends took their time, saying small goodbyes and get-wells.

"Feel better," James said to her, as Pomfrey closed the door behind him. She dusted off her hands, knocking off the invisible grime. She handed Lily a goblet, full of a dreamless potion. Lily swallowed it roughly and handed the empty goblet back to the satisfied healer.

"I will," Lily promised to the silent room, closing her eyes as various schemes and strategies ran through her head.

* * *

I hoped you liked this chapter! I felt like it was a lot, but as i read it over.. it really didn't seem like much!

And i do have to say, everything is JK rowlings! I own nothing, but the plot.

I didn't want you all to wait too long!

Review please! Constructive criticism is welcomed. (I guess :))


	10. Chapter 10

I first want to start this chapter with saying THANK YOU! for everyone who's Favorited, story alerted, reviewed or even VIEWED! Everyone has kept me going and now im FINALLY on chapter 10! You get me so psyched to actually write!

Okay, well, here's back to it, because i know how much i find it annoying (NO OFFENSE!) who writes incredibly long.. intro things.

* * *

Lily awoke the next morning with a jolt, feeling alert and more awake than she had in weeks. She struggled to sit up though, her back feeling weak and stiff. Rolling to her side, she propped herself up on elbows, examining the empty infirmary. The sky beyond the large windows was still dark, though a tinge of pink stained the eastern sky.

As if she were attached to an alarm, a very peppy Madam Pomfrey skipped into the long room from her office, carrying two small goblets of steaming concoctions. She smiled brightly at Lily, setting the goblets on her nightstand. She straightened and looked down her nose at Lily.

"Good morning, Lily," she greeted, placing her hands on her hips, in a motherly fashion. "Now, first goblet is filled with something that will hopefully help with the aches and pains." She pointed at the cup closest to Lily, which let out an attractive gurgle. "The second is a Pepper-up potion, just in case."

"Thanks, Poppy," said Lily, returning the warm smile. She adjusted herself again, feeling as if her bones and joints had aged years overnight.

"Don't worry about that," Pomfrey comforted, coming around to grab Lily's arms and help her fully sit up. "Should go away here within the the next twenty four hours.. Though, if you do let me keep you..."

"Poppy, you already gave the okay to let me go!" Lily quickly reminded, smiling up at her.

"Oh, I know, I know, but I do worry about you.."

"No need to! You know me, I bounce back fairly quick!"

At this, the healer gave her a look of disbelief.

"I said 'fairly quick', didn't I?" Lily defended hastily, swinging her feet off the bed.

Pomfrey tutted lightly, giving the redheaded girl a stern look. "I had the house elves retrieve a clean pair of clothes for you. You can use the washroom. Breakfast should be starting shortly."

"Thank you, Poppy," Lily said softly, feeling slightly somber when she vaguely remembered the look of horror the healer had worn on her face the previous day.

"No problem, m'dear," she replied, wringing her hands lightly. "Just don't go starting fights with any professors. Not very student-like."

Lily had the sense to look abashed as the healer smiled down at her, before the healer turned and walked back into her office. Lily took the moment to just sit, reflecting on the previous day.

It was, no doubt, not something she knew she was proud of. She was a prefect, after all. Professors' favorite. Part of the 'Slug Club', hoping to have a future at the Auror Academy. Something like this may not have the best consequences. But as she pondered on it just a little longer.. she couldn't help the satisfied smile that slid onto her face, feeling a slight sense of achievement at being able to disarm a professor who claimed to be some sort of great wizard who could fight.

She stood, struggling again to straighten her back. As she reached her arms to stretch, she winced, pausing with her arms half in the air, knowing it would hurt worse to raise them any higher. She grabbed the steaming goblet closest to her, trying to down the potion in one gulp. She spluttered, coughing into her hand and strained to swallow the rest of it.

She passed on the Pepper-Up potion, already feeling strangely awake and alert. Grabbing the clean clothes on the foot of the bed, she walked into the washroom, shutting the door and placing the clothes onto the counter. She gave a start when she caught her reflection in the mirror. Her hair was a mess, sticking up in random places. Using her wand to smooth it down, she grimaced as she noticed the cut on her forehead, near her hairline. A bruise, already turning yellow, was settled high on her cheek just below her eye.

She let out a long sigh, turning away from the mirror and began to undress. She fought to pull her night shirt up over her head, wincing and cursing. Getting her uniform on was a feat in itself, as she fought to pull her skirt up around her hips. She buttoned up her shirt up last, forgoing actually tucking it in. Using her arms seemed hard enough. Having to reach around to tuck in her shirt?

Deciding to stifle her pride, she would have Marlene help her finish getting dressed. She grabbed the grey cardigan that was at the bottom of the pile, slid into her flats, and threw her night clothes into the offered hamper.

Leaving the empty infirmary shortly after, she headed straight to the Great Hall, trying her best to keep her back straight as she skipped down the stairs into the Entrance Hall. As she made it towards the last few steps, she was startled by a loud voice.

"Alright there, Evans?"

Surprised, she almost lost her footing, feeling that infuriating shock of having your heart jump into your throat. She steadied herself on the landing, clutching tightly at the railing.

"What the fuck, Potter!" she screeched once she was stable, wincing as her back twinged. She looked up at him, glaring at the sheepish look on his face.

"Sorry," said James, reaching down to pick up her cardigan that she had dropped in her almost fall. Sirius, Remus, and Peter stood behind him, all smiling at her.

"Feeling any better, Lily?" Remus asked, reaching out his hand to further assist her. She took it gratefully, smiling back at him.

"What are you all doing up so early?" she asked them, snatching her cardigan from James' hands. They did nothing to hide the look that the four of them shared, before turning to look at her, all smiling brilliantly. She gave them a suspicious look.

"Just heading to breakfast, of course," Sirius answered her, gesturing towards the Great Hall as if it were obvious.

"Right," Lily said, narrowing her eyes. She released Remus' hand, crossing her arms and shifted her stance, but winced immediately.

"Are you feeling any better?" James asked, repeating Remus' earlier question.

"Oh, well, yes, I can definitely say I'm feeling better," she answered, still looking between the four boys. "Back's just a bit stiff, still, though."

"I could help with that!" Sirius exclaimed, practically skipping towards her. Lily expected him to pull out his wand, but he just came to stand behind her.

"Oh, no, that's-" she started.

"Sirius, don't-" James tried, reaching his arms out, as if to pull her away from Sirius.

Sirius wrapped his long arms around her, grabbing her own to cross in front of her. Thoroughly confused, she let him pull her closer, her back against his chest. She felt it comical, as he was quite a bit taller than her.

"Really, Sirius, stop-" James tried, again, rubbing his hand against his brow. Behind her, she felt Sirius crouch slightly, bending his knees.

"Oh, no-" she tried, realizing what he was about to do.

"Alright! One, two, _three,_" he cried, speaking very fast. He straightened, but bent backwards, pulling Lily with him. She cried out as her legs lifted off the ground, her back curving backwards along Sirius' chest. She cried out again as she felt her spine crack multiple times.

It was only seconds, before Sirius let her drop from his grip. As soon as her feet hit the ground, she crumpled, falling to her knees, throwing her hands out to stop herself from falling forward completely.

James and Remus immediately rushed forward, kneeling in front of her. Peter stepped closer, wringing his hands anxiously.

"Oh, _shite_, Lily, I'm so sorry!" Sirius exclaimed, kneeling behind her and gently placing his hand on her back. "I thought it'd help," he explained, his face pained.

"Clearly, it didn't, Padfoot," James practically snarled, trying to glimpse Lily's face, hidden behind the curtain of her red hair. Sirius looked hurt for a moment, staring at James, before turning his attention back onto the small redhead.

"No," Lily's small voice came, bringing immediate relief to James. "No, I think.. I think I'm okay," she told them, a bit breathless. She raised her head slowly, raising a hand to tuck her hair behind her ears. Taking both James' and Remus' offered hands, she let them help her stand.

When they had her standing straight and stable, she rolled her shoulders experimentally. She hummed in thought.

"Actually, I think that helped," she told them wonderingly, slightly twisting her torso from side to side. She beamed at Sirius. "Thanks, I guess I must've just really needed my back cracked."

Sirius smiled triumphantly, first at Lily, then at James from above her hand. "Whatever one can do, m'lady," he cheeked, bowing. Lily laughed at him.

"Ha, ha, yes," James stated in a dry voice, crossing his arms. "Try to break Lily's back, again. So humorous."

"Oh, lighten up, Potter," Lily scolded, trying to make her voice sound more annoyed, but unable to. Her back felt ten times better.

James only looked at her with a look of slight disbelief, letting his hands fall to his sides. "Are you joking me? Lily, yesterday, I just watched-"

"Lily!" Marlene's voice rang out and Lily twirled, watching as her best friend skipped down the stairs, flanked by the rest of her friends. Lily braced herself as Marlene all but ran to her.

"Oh, Merlin's great-"

Lily let out a great gasp as her friend practically vaulted into her, wrapping her thin, but definite muscular arms around her. "Ow, bleeding hell, Mar, yes, I'm fine, but I _did_ just get out of the infirmary!"

"Oh, sorry," and though she looked as if she did not regret almost knocking the redhead down, Marlene pulled back slightly, her lips pulled in a bright smile. "Pomfrey let you out?" she asked, moving further back as Emmeline went in for the next hug.

"Clearly," Lily laughed, returning the girls' hugs as they took turns.

"Women," Sirius marveled, grinning roguishly.

"Oi," Marlene warned, narrowing her eyes at him. "So what, we're worried about our friend!"

"Nothing wrong with that," Sirius said, shaking his head innocently.

"Shall we eat?" Peter spoke up, smiling at the group.

"Absolutely," James lauhed, clapping his hand heavily on Peter's shoulder. "Ladies?" he gestured, allowing them to enter the Great Hall first. When Lily passed him, she noticed him looking at her with a thoughtful, solemn look. He turned his gaze quickly, holding the door open for his mates.

They took their places at the table and began to chat merrily, piling food on their plates. As the Great Hall began to slowly fill in, Lily noticed many appraising looks.

"Mar?" she asked, turning to her dark haired friend. The girl herself had just swallowed a fork full of eggs and followed Lily's gaze at the other staring students.

"Your fight with Donhell spread like wildfire," Marlene explained, setting her fork down and taking a drink of her juice. "I'm pretty sure the whole school's heard of it by now."

Lily glanced up towards the Head Table, following the line of professor's till they hit an empty chair.

"We suspect he's too ashamed to show his face," Dorcas told her, from across the table. "Didn't show up for dinner last night either."

"Do you think he's alright?" Lily asked, feeling only slightly concerned. She turned to Remus surprised, as he had snorted loudly.

"I think his pride as taken quite the blow," Remus told her, playing with his food.

"Probably having nightmares about it," Sirius added, smirking.

"May not be able to face students for a while, I suspect," said James airily, staring down at his plate with acute interest. Peter let out a rather short giggle, that turned into a rather suspicious coughing fit.

"What did you do?" Lily accused, pausing in buttering her toast. All four boys looked at her with surprise, looking overly offended.

"Nothing!" James and Sirius hissed together. Remus turned his gaze away, his eyes studying the ceiling with great passion. Lily caught eyes with Peter, who immediately looked away, spluttering into his goblet.

"That's absurd," James defended, stabbing at his eggs. His eyes, however, held a playful glint as he looked back at Lily. "We did nothing to physically maim or scare anyone," he promised.

"Now.. psychologically, maybe," Sirius murmured lowly into his cup, his smirk barely hidden by the golden rim. Lily studied them with slight suspicion, but after mulling it over a bit, she returned to spreading butter and jam onto her toast, feeling that if they did do something, she would rather not know either way.

They finished breakfast leisurely, the four boys remaining oddly silent after Lily's accusation.

The large group separated as they headed towards their own scheduled classes.

"Oh, bollocks," Lily exclaimed, as she, Sirius, and James began to head towards the dungeons. "I don't have my books."

"We'll tell Sluggy you're on your way," James said, running a hand through his hair.

"But I'm sure you'll have to make it up to somehow," Sirius finished, wiggling his eyebrows.

Lily laughed aloud and turned, heading back into the entrance hall and up the stairs to the Gryffindor tower. She jogged lightly, still feeling achy, but her back feeling loads better. She clambered through the portrait hole, rushing up the girls' stairs and grabbed her bag from her bed. She emptied it as fast as she could, stuffing her Potion's book and notes back in.

She hummed happily, thanking the stars for her luck, being able to make it back to the dungeons with no mishap, the stairwells on her side this time. She skidded to a halt as one of the stonewalls began to move, the sound of stone grating against stone echoing, revealing the entrance of the Slytherin's Common area.

Multiple boys filed out, whispering darkly to one another. Lily froze, but maintained a dignified air, adjusting the strap of her bag on her shoulder. Her eyebrows rose as she noticed Severus among them.

"Well, what do we have here?" One of them sneered, his dark brown hair falling into his eyes.

"A lone lion, it seems," another continued and Lily tried to walk past them towards the Potion's room. She was halted as two of them stepped in front of her, blocking her way. They raked their eyes up and down her, identical grins growing on their faces.

"Let me pass," she ordered, glaring up at their faces. She decided to pointedly ignore Severus to her left.

"Well, we can't have a Gryffindor knowing where our dungeons are, can we, boys?" This time, one she recognized as Mulciber. She had put him in detention last year, as he had been playing a poorly thought out prank on a younger Hufflepuff.

"I'm a prefect, I know where _all _the common areas are," she said, trying to not sound contrite. Or to add on an insult. The boys raised their eyebrows.

"Well, we've got some lip from this one, Avery," Mulicber sneered, idly playing with his wand.

"I've got to get to class," Lily said, staring pointedly past them. "Let me pass," she repeated.

"No, I don't think we'll let you go that easily," Avery said, scowling deeply. Reflexively, Lily took a step back and placed her hand on her hip, comforted by the feeling of her wand.

"Let's just go," Severus spoke, his voice laced with boredom. When Lily turned her head to look at him, he was staring straight at her.

"Whatever," Mulciber groused, glaring at Lily. Avery followed him as he brushed pass her, careful to knock into her hard, causing her to stumble.

"Mudblood," he whispered, his voice uncomfortably close to her face.

She glanced at Severus again. He watched as the pair rounded the corner and disappeared from sight. He turned back and stared at her with no emotion.

Not speaking, they turned simultaneously towards the Potions Classroom, falling into step like they had done countless times before. They entered the classroom, Severus holding the door open for her. They were the last to arrive, the classroom already full.

"Ah! My favorite pair!" Slughorn cried loudly, bringing the attention of the students to the two that walked to the front of the room. Lily realized for the first time since the washroom in the infirmary, she probably still looked disheveled; her shirt untucked, cardigan in her bag, hair probably looking wild from her run to the Gryffindor tower. She tried to stop the burning of her cheeks.

"Now, we shall start!" Slughorn proclaimed jovially, clapping his hands together loudly. "Today, we shall learn more about..." and Lily took her seat next to Severus at the front, pulling out her notebook and immediately began to take notes. When Slughorn assigned them the potions they were to work on, Lily jumped right into it, spinning her long hair into a low bun, studying her book and notes dutifully.

"You could say thank you, you know," Severus murmured under his breath, lips barely moving.

"Why should I?" Lily requested, holding back a scoff.

"You don't know what they're capable of," came the answer, speaking as if it were obvious.

"And you do?"

"Yes."

This time, she turned to look at him fully, chucking three eel eyes into her cauldron rather violently. "Then why do you insist on being mates with them, Sev?" she asked, rather angry.

He looked up at her rather surprised. "It can't be helped," he told her, bringing his eyes back to his own cauldron.

"Like hell," she spat, miming his actions and turning back to her cauldron, using her wand to stir it four times counter clockwise. They remained silent for the rest of the class, Lily finishing her potion first. She sat back in her chair, stubbornly opening her book and reading ahead. When the bell signalling the end of classes, she jumped up, shouldering her bag, and left without another word.

At the back of the classroom, James and Sirius stopped her. James peered into her face, before looking at the back of Severus' head as he collected his things. "You okay?" he asked, looking back at her.

"Fine," she answered shortly.

"We're thinking of meeting after dinner," Sirius told her, the same look of skepticism on James' face on his. Lily nodded silently, staring adamantly at their faces as Severus passed them.

"Did he do anything?" James asked, very serious. Sirius followed Severus with his eyes narrowed slightly.

"No," she said, giving them a stern look. "Don't go starting anything," she warned, her voice tinged with bitterness. When they didn't say anything, she felt growling. "I _mean_ it. Don't be an asshole."

Their only response was gazing at her with blank stares. She huffed angrily, brushing past them rather roughly, and led them back to the Gryffindor tower.

-:-

As dinner came to an end, they decided to walk off in pairs, to not raise suspicion. They were to meet on the 7th floor's staircase landing, just inside the corridor. Lily and Marlene were the last to leave, playing with their cold food idly.

"Ready?" Marlene asked, bobbing her legs up and down, clearly restless.

"Alice, Dorcas, and Remus just left," Lily noted. "Let's give them a minute, yeah?"

Marlene let out an unattractive harrumph, stabbing the meat on her plate rather violently.

"It'll only be a minute," Lily admonished, trying not to laugh at the girl's misery.

"I can't wait to get started, though."

"It's not even the actual Game, Mar."

"I know."

"You sure about that?"

"Yes.." Marlene turned to look at Lily, a playful smile on her lips. "Doesn't mean I can't act like it's not practice."

"I wonder what's on the 7th floor," Lily mused, sipping her pumpkin juice. "I don't think the Arithmancy classroom will work.. and the disused bathroom isn't the right sort of place, yeah?"

Marlene only shrugged. "Maybe we're just meeting there?"

"Ladies," McGonagall greeted, as if appearing from thin air. Both girls jumped forcefully. Lily slammed her goblet down on the table, causing its contents to splash spectacularly.

"Professor," they said, turning to look at the older witch. Marlene tried to inconspicuously wipe juice from her face.

The Head of Gryffindor herself seemed to be trying to hold back a smile, her lips pursed together tightly. "Miss Evans, please don't forget patrols tonight. Mr. Lupin will, of course, join you, but I seemed to have missed him."

Lily smiled brightly, nodding her head. "Absolutely. Nine O'clock. Yes, Professor."

"Goodnight, Miss Evans. Miss Mckinnon."

"Goodnight," they sang, turning back to face the table. Catching each other's eyes, they broke into an excited, yet nervous giggle. Lily wiped at the stain now on her shirt with her sleeve, only seeming to smear the orange colored juice further.

"Think she heard anything?" Lily asked, still giggling.

"I hope not," Marlene stated, unable to look serious.

"Is it just me, or is harder to keep things secret this year?"

"Harder to keep secrets."

"Anything else would seem abnormal."

Marlene laughed loudly, standing from her spot and holding her arm out for Lily. "Shall we take our leave?"

"Yes, of course."

They looped their arms together and headed out the Great Hall, trying not to take the stairs at a run. When they reached the 7th floor, they turned towards the east corridor, finding the rest of a group in a state of boredom. Emmeline and Dorcas sat next to each other on the floor, Alice standing beside them. Across from them, James sat on the floor, Sirius and Remus on either side of him. Peter paced lightly, fiddling with his wand.

James was the first to catch sight of them, jumping straight up, clapping his hands together excitedly. Sirius jumped at the sudden movement, grinning widely as he caught sight of the two girls.

"Alright! What took you so long?" he crowed, pushing himself off of the wall.

"McGonagall," Marlene answered, as she and Lily both held a hand out to help Dorcas and Emmeline stand. "Shall we get to it then?"

"Where are we going?" Lily asked, unable to hide her curiosity.

"You'll see," Sirius answered, rubbing his hands together.

"We kind of stumbled upon it ourselves," James added, as they led the group down the corridor further. They stopped in the middle of the empty corridor.

"Well?" Dorcas pushed, studying the large tapestry, depicting a funny scene of a Wizard dressed in purple robes, seemingly trying to teach a small group of trolls to.. Dance? Lily mused. Dorcas tugged at the fabric, pulling it aside to check for a secret passageway or door. It revealed nothing.

James only smiled maddeningly as he paced leisurely, hands in his pockets.

"Wha-" Lily began, furrowing her eyesbrows, but stopped herself, as a door slowly drew itself onto the stone wall, it's design intricate. James reached forward with a flourish, gesturing them in with an arm.

Sirius, Remus, and Peter walked through the door, unfazed. The girls followed a little reluctant, Lily trailing behind them slowly.

"Wow," Lily breathed, as a large, rectangular room met her gaze, the ceiling taller than a normal classroom, with dirty glass windows that revealed the setting sun.

"Brilliant, isn't it?" James said from behind her, smiling.

"What is this place?" Alice asked, walking into the room further, studying the open space.

"Well, we're not really sure," Remus spoke, shrugging his shoulders. "We found a random door when we were running from-"

"It changed, actually," Sirius interrupted, shaking his head sharply at his blonde friend. "Definitely wasn't as large," he remarked, his gaze tracing the lines of the ceilings.

"It'll do," said Marlene breezingly, but when she caught Lily's eye, they both shared an excited look.

"Let's get to it!" James exclaimed. "Teach us the ways of this.. 'game'."

"Shall we cover the rules first?" Lily asked. Only Remus looked mildly interested, the three other boys looking a little put out.

"Okay," Sirius breathed, as they sat in a large circle on the floor, grabbing large pillows from the corner to sit on.

"Lily can do the honors," Marlene insisted, leaning back on the heels of her hands, legs crossed.

"Of course," Lily huffed, tucking her hair behind her ears, realizing she had the attention of everyone in the room. "Well, for starters_, _Magic only. Only the one spell. No defensive spells or hexes. No cheating by waiting for the tagee to unfreeze to tag them again." Lily paused again, feeling a little self conscious, even though she had repeated the rules hundreds of times before. "Once your spell hits them, you run. Hiding in one place longer than five minutes will dock points. We play fair, or you lose."

"Doesn't seem to hard, does it?" Sirius interrupted, grinning in a wolfish way.

Lily ignored him and continued the words remembered by heart. "The Game is scheduled to last two hours. No breaks. No 'time outs'. You receive five points per hit, though, you lose two and quarter if you, yourself, are hit. If you make it to base before the time is up, you get an extra five points. If you are any later than one second after time is up, you're disqualified.

"If you run into anyone, student or teacher, you _must_ notify everyone. If you're seriously injured, you _must_ notify someone. If you are unable to finish the Game, however, you lose."

Marlene grinned happily, clearing enjoying listen to Lily's spiel.

"I guess though," Lily continued, "we usually only play inside of the castle.. due to the larger number of players, should we expand the boundaries?"

"I think we should," Dorcas replied, nodding her head. James and Sirius nodded, clearly having no objection.

When Lily looked at Emmeline, Alice, and Marlene, they all shrugged. "Couldn't hurt," Marlene reasoned.

"How do you keep track of points?" Remus inquired.

"Lily, with her brilliant mind, came up with a really smart way," Emmeline stated, proudly.

"I didn't come up with it," said Lily, feeling her cheeks warm. "I read it a book." Emmeline waved her off, shaking her head..

"Here, Lily, you can show them. Use me," Marlene offered, rolling up her sleeve and holding it out to her. She caught the juvenile look James and Sirius shared and rolled her eyes. Retrieving her wand from her waist band, she held it over Marlene's exposed arm.

"_Reor et praesto tessera,"_ Lily spoke, satisfied as the golden scrawl began to appear on her friends arm.

"What does that mean?" Sirius asked, as the boy sat up straighter to watch the golden writing grow on Marlene's forearm.

"It's kind of a rough translation of 'count and note the tally'," she told him, frowning. "But I guess I'll have to rethink the movement of my wand. I'm not sure I remember how to add onto it."

They watched as the girls' first initial and last names appeared. "We may have to change to just initials, since there's so many of us," Lily noted. She silently added up the initials.. LE, MM, DM, AH, EV.. JP, SB, RL, PP. She was glad that none of them had similar initials.

"Should we create teams? Like partners?" Peter asked, glancing between them.

"I don't know," Lily said, honestly.

"Maybe for the first Game?" Marlene wondered. "So they understand the rules?"

"I don't think that'd work," Dorcas pointed out. "We have uneven numbers."

"We'll have to think about it."

"So what's the actual spell? To hit people?" Sirius asked.

"Well, it's '_Cesso_,'," Lily informed them. "You have to kind of flick your wand down as you say it."

"Or shout it," said Dorcas, her voice wry. Lily rolled her eyes, but laughed softly.

"You can technically whisper, but you know, heat of the moment."

"I'm sure," James replied, waggling his eyebrows suggestively. Sirius let out a loud bark of laughter.

"Lovely," Lily couldn't help but roll her eyes, trying not to smile.

"The spell?" Remus prompted, but smiled, amused by his friends.

"Right, well, like I said, the motions kind of a downward flick," she raised her wand and repeated the movement. "_Cesso_," she said, watching the bright blue streak of magic shoot from her wand. The spell hit the opposite wall, exploding like fireworks.

"Does it hurt?" Remus asked.

"Yes," Peter spoke, his voice slightly cracking. He winced as he remembered the previous time he, himself, had been hit.

"That's really only for the first few times," Emmeline insisted. "Wicked headache, though." Peter nodded his head vigorously, as if to prove her words.

"Alright, can we practice it?"

"Sure," Marlene answered for Lily, but remained seated, smiling. The boys, slightly timid, all stood, wands in hand.

"Okay," Sirius said, seemingly a little nervous in front of the small audience. He raised his wand, facing the wall. "_Ce-so," _he spoke, jerking his wand harshly.

"Oh, no, it's '_Ces-so'_," Lily corrected, resting her chin on her hand as she watched the boys.

"_Cesso," _Remus called, his wand movements better than Sirius'. Only a few, dark blue sparks spouted from his wand. He tried again, the sparks shooting out a little further.

James watched him, trying to mimic the wand movements and he repeated the spell. He was rewarded by a reaction similar to Remus', though the sparks looked more similar to the bright blue magic when performed correctly.

Peter attempted the spell, somehow shooting red sparks from his wand.

Lily jumped up, feeling a little impatient. "Here," she murmured, standing between Sirius and James. "_Cesso,"_ she repeated, the blue streak of magic streaming from her wand. She smirked, feeling pleased, hoping they had been watching. She looked up at both of their faces, urging them to try again.

"_Cesso!_" Sirius called, speaking the word correctly, but sparks only flew from his wand again.

"No, here," she grabbed his wand hand and moved it for him. "You need to kind of jab it down before," she informed him, guiding his hand in the proper way. From over her head, he shot James a sort of goading look. "Shut up and try it again," she ordered, stepping back.

"_Cesso!" _he shouted, following Lily's movement. The spell shot off, hitting the wall spectacularly. He let out a whoop, punching his fist in the air. "Prongs?" he egged on, smiling smugly.

He shot a glare at Sirius first, before turning back towards the wall and raised his wand. "_Cesso,"_ he said, his voice loud and strong. The spell was almost successful, but fell short a few feet of the wall. Lily stepped forward to him, as she did Sirius, lightly grabbing his hand and moving it for him in the correct motion.

"Like this," she insisted. When she looked up at him, she found him staring right back, that thoughtful but solemn look on his face from before. Lily backed away, giving him space, and for some maddening reason, she felt her cheeks warm.

He still stared at her another beat, before turning back and performing the spell. It hit the wall, bursting like a firework. He gave her a very excited smile, his grin wide.

"Good job," she told him earnestly, before walking down to Peter, who raised his wand unsteadily, nervous. It took him a few more tries to get it right, giddily smiling when the spell finally shot from his wand correctly.

When they had all practiced it a few more times, they decided to try it on themselves, laughing rambunctiously as they warred small battles on each other. Lily sat back down with the other girls, watching as the boys fought, but still took turns freezing each other.

"This will be brilliant," Marlene murmured, resting her head on her knees now, her arms wrapped around her legs.

"Oh, absolutely," Dorcas agreed immediately. Lily chose not to say anything, but only smiled, unable to disagree with her friends.

"When can we actually play?" Sirius demanded, dodging when Remus shot the spell at him. He nearly tripped over James' feet, who was on the floor, frozen. Lily bit her lip to fight back a giggle and James took that moment to wake, sitting up and shaking his head wildly.

"Friday?" Dorcas asked eagerly.

"Can't, got Quidditch practice Saturday morning," James informed the room, jumping to stand. Both Marlene and Sirius groaned and began to protest loudly. "We've got our first game coming up!" he argued, looking slightly outraged.

"Saturday?" Emmeline wondered.

"Is that the best idea?" Remus wondered, ducking Sirius' retaliation. "A lot of students go out on Saturday. Can't really risk it, can we?"

"That's true," Lily agreed. "Maybe sometime early next week?"

"I, uh, can't," Remus mumbled, his expression troubled. "I've got to visit my mum," he supplied at the girls' curious looks.

"She not feeling any better?" Lily asked, feeling guilty. He shook his head, staring at the ground.

"Well, maybe, say, Thursday night, then?" Marlene suggested, looking around the group. They each looked at each other, coming to a mutual decision.

"Thursday, it is, then!" Sirius beamed.

"Oh, shoot! Patrols! Remus!" Lily cried, as she rose from her seated position. "We're already a little late.."

"I'm sure no one will notice," James consoled, chuckling at the over-worried look on her face. She sent him a withering look as she straightened her skirt, sheathing her wand.

"Remus?" she prompted, standing at the door.

"Coming," he replied, walking like a little child who's just been put on time-out. "I'll see you later, mates."

The rest of the group waved their goodbyes as the two prefects of the group left the room, the door shutting loudly behind them.

"Shall we practice a little more?" Marlene inquired, smiling wickedly.

* * *

It's definitely a lot longer than i thought i would make it! I really hope you all are enjoying it!

And again, i just want to thank everyone who's reviewed and favorited! it's AWESOME.

Please review and tell me what you think!

Happy Holidays, by the way!


	11. Chapter 11

So sorry! I keep feeling like I neglect this story, but i keep getting in a writing rut.. I promise i'll work harder! But thank you to everyone who's stuck with me and those who are new! I like the reviews. Here you go!

* * *

"I'm really excited for this," Lily admitted, twirling her wand between her fingers. Remus chuckled lightly, ducking behind a tapestry in the corridor to check for any stragglers. Finding no one, he took up his spot walking next to her.

"You don't have to sound so guilty," Remus told her and she rolled her eyes in return, laughing despite herself.

"It's not that I feel guilty, I just.. don't... like change," she ventured, struggling to find the right words.

"It probably doesn't help that James and Sirius are involved, either," he surmised as they rounded a corner.

"No, it really doesn't," she sighed, looking down at her wand as she played with it. She tapped it against her palm in thought.

"They aren't so bad," said Remus, as if hearing her thoughts. She laughed derisively, tightening her grip on her wand. It radiated heat in her hand, the warmth familiar.

"Yes, I know, but I'm just worried.. that they won't take this seriously," she told him, stopping to check inside of a broom closet for any late-night rendezvous, but the broom closet held no occupants. She shut it with a snap and turned back to her patrol partner, who looked deep in thought.

"What?" asked Lily curiously.

He didn't answer right away, but seemed to mull something over. "Lily, why did you start the Game?"

"Well," she started, as they continued on down the long corridor. "I thought it would be fun, with this huge castle..."

"So then why does it have to be so serious?" he asked, his eyebrows lightly furrowed.

"Because it's different this year," she commented, raising her eyes to the dark, high ceiling. She let out a sigh, tucking a piece of stray hair behind her ear. "I think you know that, Remus."

"Yeah, I guess I do."

They walked silently for a few steps, neither exactly sure of what to say next.

"Your back still doing okay?" asked Remus.

"Yep," Lily replied, twisting her back experimentally. "Madame Pomfrey truly knows her work," she joked, as she lightly kneaded her lower back, the muscles still slightly tender.

"I hate to admit it, but I wish I would have been there to see the action myself," he murmured. "Kind of makes you look at Donhell completely different..."

"Yeah," Lily answered, feeling slightly awkward. "He just had no right to speak about Muggleborns like that..," she felt her voice grow stronger as her blood began to warm. "It's disgusting. He's essentially teaching blood superiority. With this bloody war going on.."

"It's bizarre how outside of these walls, people are getting killed and slaughtered," Remus brooded, his features turning dark.

Lily bit her lip, crossing her arms across her chest. From their time together, she had learned that Remus' father had been attacked and killed when Remus was young. Though her own father had passed away shortly after her second year , Lily knew she could not fully understand how Remus felt. She could always see the pain in his face and demeanor when ever it was brought up.

His mother, from what she remembered, had not taken the news of his father very well. She was a muggle, weighed down from the grief of losing her husband. Lily knew, her own mother being a widower, that it wasn't easy. At one point, Remus' mother had become ill and still has not fully recovered.

However, in the back of her mind, even though Remus was a very good friend, she felt that he was not telling her the entire truth. The guilt of feeling like she didn't trust him deterred her decision to face him, though, and she hoped he would possibly tell her the complete truth eventually.

The rest of patrol went by silently, both prefects lost in their own, individual thoughts. By the time they returned from patrols, no one had waited up for them. Waving silent good nights, they went their separate ways up to their respective dormitory.

-:-

"Oi, what's up with you?" Emmeline asked in a low voice, keeping her head down as she jotted down notes. Lily sighed lightly, letting out a long breath as she slouched back in her chair. The Charms' professor stood before them, lecturing again on theories.

Lily looked solemnly down at the blank page in front of her, her quill placed across the white parchment. Though taking her notes was something of a distraction, at this point, she felt she could barely pay attention. She leaned forward, picking up her quill and rolled it in her fingers softly.

"Nervous about Defense," she admitted quietly.

At this, Emmeline looked both empathetic and murderous. The effect was comical and Lily had to stifle a giggle at her friend's conflicted features.

"Donhell should be fired," whispered Emmeline vehemently. "How is that at all ethical to hurt a student like that?"

"I'm not sure," Lily answered quietly, now drawing circles on the empty parchment in front of her. "I'm trying very hard not to dwell on it."

Lily left it at that, continuing to draw circles and stars across her paper, untill the class was dismissed. Emmeline bade her farewell and Lily decided to take her time walking to the Defense tower, though the flow of students seem to part when they caught sight of her red hair, making the journey more leisurely and less jostled than normal.

By the time she made it to the classroom, she noticed it was full. A hushed, awkward silence fell among the Hufflepuffs and the Gryffindors as they watched Lily walk up to her desk and take her seat next to Marlene.

Lily greeted her with a pleasant smile, despite how Marlene was looking at her in a way that made Lily think the dark haired girl believed she would burst out crying, explode in anger, or both.

"Hey, Lily," Alice greeted, softly, with a smile that just seemed too empathetic. She smiled in return, raising her hand in a small wave, as behind her, Sirius tipped an invisible hat.

"'ello," she replied, dropping her book bag at her feet and pulling out her notebook. She struggled momentarily to find a quill at the bottom of the endless pit and jerked in surprise as she felt something tickle her cheek.

"Here," James said in a low voice from beside her, as he sat in the desk beside her. She jerked again in annoyance when he tried to rub the feather against her cheek, but chuckled at the mischievously innocent look on his face.

"No thanks," said Lily dryly, finding her own quill and pulling it out of her bag. She waved it rather wildly in front of his face, mocking his movements from before. He laughed quietly and shrugged, lounging back in his desk's chair.

Even though the professor was not in the room yet, the room was still silent as if he were. Everyone seemed to wait with bated breath, glancing nervously at the redheaded girl who sat in the front row. Lily kept her eyes down at the parchment in front of her, drawing lazy circles and swirls, trying to avoid her friends' gazes, which no doubt, held sympathy or anxiety.

When Lily heard the Professor's door open and shut with a loud snap, she raised her gaze and set her jaw defiantly. She would show him that she wasn't afraid.

However, when she caught the gaze of Donhell, he met her stare with one filled with such disgust and repulsion, Lily had to stop herself from shaking in anger. The parchment beneath her quill tore as the sharp tip pushed down onto it just a little too roughly.

"Lily," Marlene sighed quietly, her tone sympathetically warning.

"I'm fine," Lily responded quietly, dropping her gaze back onto her parchment.

"10 points from Gryffindor for speaking during class," Donhell murmured, his back to the class as he appeared to search for something on his desk.

Lily's jaw dropped as the other Gryffindors around her made sounds of bewilderment. Marlene turned to look at Lily with an expression of disbelief.

"Excuse me, Sir? Class hasn't even started," Sirius spoke from behind her, comically flabbergasted.

Donhell turned to face them and leaned against his desk, looking over them coolly. His eyes landed on Sirius just a moment later. "Class begins as soon as I enter the classroom, Mr. Black. Whether the bell rings or not."

"You haven't told us that," James argued, his brows furrowed in anger.

"Oh, I didn't? Well, now you all know," Donhell retorted, crossing his arms over his chest.

"But sir, that's not fair to take away the points.." Marlene protested quietly.

"No? Well, it gets the lesson across," he finalized, pushing himself off of the desk, to the blackboard. "Alright, for today's lesson, we're covering more defensive spells. We're going to expand on the shield charm. Now, who can tell me where the original spell came from?"

When no one answered, Lily swallowed hard before speaking up. "The Shield Charm, known as most variations of "_Protego"_, was first notated in 1392 by Sir Ricardus the Wrathful, in his autobiography he published shortly after his 108th birthday."

Professor Donhell seemed to mull over her answer, rubbing his sharp jaw line thoughtfully. "Correct. Another 10 points from Gryffindor."

It took Lily a moment longer than Marlene to understand what he had said.

"What?" Marlene cried, indignantly. Lily threw her a sharp look, before turning back to the professor standing at the front of the room.

"I'm sorry?" Lily asked, just as indignant as her friend.

"You spoke out of turn," said Donhell, his expression schooled into one of nonchalance.

"But you asked the class a question!" Lily pointed out, feeling bitter frustration grow in her throat. "And I happened to know the answer and spoke it." Why was he being so spiteful?

"Yes, but you were not called upon. 5 points from Gryffindor for arguing."

"Lily," Marlene pleaded, sensing her friend's anger and frustration.

"You're joking!" Lily cried, ignoring Marlene. "That's not right!"

"No need to get rattled, Miss Evans," Donhell soothed with a sick, pleasant smile. "Another 5 points."

Lily bit her lip from retorting, seeing that no matter what she spoke, he'd punish her. He gazed at her with a haughty stare, goading her into arguing further. From beside her, Marlene placed a hand on Lily's shaking fingers, curling her own around Lily's pale ones. Angry, Lily shook away her hand.

Donhell stared at the two before speaking again, his tone matching his faux concerned smile. "Something else, Miss Evans?"

"No, Professor," Lily spat, hardly attempting to keep some of the hatred out of her eyes.

"Quaint," Donhell drawled, turning back to the blackboard to write "_Protego_" across the top of the board.

Lily, however, had had enough. The class had barely started and she wasn't quite prepared to deal with the professor's hostility. Or arrogance. Unable to keep her temper in check, Lily grabbed her bag from her feet and started to stuff her things into it roughly.

"Lily," Marlene whispered urgently. "What are you doing? _Lily._"

"Leaving," Lily answered, knocking her chair back as she went to stand. The wooden chair fell back onto the stone floor loudly, startling many of the students. Donhell whirled, hand still poised in the air, his expression changing from curiosity to disdainful disapproval.

"Miss Evans, what are you doing?" he inquired loudly.

Lily chose to ignore him, turning to leave as she shouldered her bag. James grabbed her wrist, his face full of concern.

"Where are you going?" he asked her, staring straight up into her face. Lily took the moment to look at her fellow classmates, who all shared a mutual look of shock. Even Sirius, who ditched classes on a daily basis, was looking at her with such surprise his eyebrows disappeared beneath his hairline.

"Anywhere but here," Lily told James earnestly, shaking his hand off of her arm and beginning to walk down the aisle to the door.

"Evans," Donhell called, his tone tinged now with anger. "Detention if you leave through that door before I've dismissed you!"

"Sounds lovely," Lily replied, pulling open the door and exiting without looking back.

"_Detention!_" she heard him call, sounding rather childlike. At this point, Lily found that she did not care. The door slammed loudly behind her as she pulled it shut.

"Thanks for the wonderful class, Professor. Very informative," she spoke to herself, finding her way to the library. She entered, feeling a little annoyed as the library seemed fuller than normal. She paused at the doorway, before turning back around and deciding to head towards the courtyard, where hopefully it would be less populated. She didn't feel much for company at this time.

By the time she had walked down through the changing stairwells and through the Entrance hall, she had already felt calmer; less angry. She ducked through the doors as a group of 4th Year Ravenclaw boys filtered into the hall. The September air was still quite warm, but a cool fall breeze hit her, blowing her hair behind her.

Luckily, the tree that she and her friends usually hung around was free. Tossing her bag down carelessly, she sat beneath the tree, resting her back against the trunk. Letting out a long winded sigh, she leaned her head back against the wood and closed her eyes, while stretching her legs out in front of her. The heavy breeze, which would normally annoy her, tossed her hair about, the long strands tickling her cheeks and nose.

"Alright there, Evans?"

She groaned loudly, turning her head away from the voice. "Please, Potter, I'm not one quite up for company."

"That's fine. Though, you seem to say that when it's not quite true," he answered, but she heard the unmistakable sound of a bag full of books being dropped onto the ground. She peeked through one eye to catch him crouching to sit in front of her.

"I mean it, Potter, leave me alone. _Please,"_ she pleaded, honestly, tired of being annoyed. He chuckled lightly, to her annoyance, but sat down anyways, stretching out his long legs around hers, his feet reaching to about her knees. Did he have to be so damn tall?

As he situated himself, he glanced around them, looking up at the sky as he loosened his tie and shrugged off his cloak. Lily watched him, but remained silent. When he was finally settled, he leaned back on the heels of his hands and finally looked at her.

"What?" he asked, as if she was looking at him like he was insane. Which, albeit, she was.

"Why are you here?" Lily asked.

"Because it's nice out?"

"I meant, out of class?"

"Oh, well, you know, stuffy in there and all. He barely noticed me leaving after you did," James informed her, rolling his neck as he looked up at the branches above them.

"Why did you leave?"

"To check up on you."

"Why?"

"Because I was worried," he answered, looking at her with such sincerity that Lily was forced to look away, down towards the Black Lake. "Lily-"

"Look," she interrupted him, pulling her legs in so she could wrap her arms around her knees. Trying to lighten the mood, she joked, "If you're going to ask me out, don't bother, Potter. I'm not in the mood." When she turned to look back at him, he was staring at her with a slight hurt, annoyed look. She frowned and picked at a frayed string on her skirt. She mentally noted that she maybe have to a buy a new one soon.

A bit awkwardly, James cleared his throat, while simultaneously running a hand through his hair. Lily watched it flip up at odd angles, already effected by the growing wind. "I just wanted to make sure you were alright," he told her. "Are you?"

"I'm fine," she reassured. "Donhell's just a complete prick. I just.. can't bloody stand him." Despite her annoyance, she laughed loudly as the wind picked up and threw half of her hair into her face. She struggled for minute, attempting to swipe away the stray strands attached her to lips and eyelashes. She couldn't help but giggle as she heard James chuckle in front of her.

"Hey, at least this mess isn't as bad as yours," she declared, tucking the the last her long hair behind her ears. James laughed outright, reaching up and mussing his own hair up even further.

"I've accepted that fact a long, long time ago," he responded, chuckling to himself.

"What were you boys working on?" she asked him, crossing her ankles and flattening out her skirt over her thighs. She fiddled her foot, her black flat dangling from her toes.

He laughed loudly this time, the afternoon sun glaring off of his glasses. "I think you have to be more specific on that one."

"The locking charm? With the book I showed you?

"Oh, that. Nah, it's nothing. Something more for leisure than anything."

"That sounds like it might be worse than what you marauders have usually planned."

"So, have we come to some sort of truce?" he asked, somewhat out of the blue.

"Fighting wise?" she queried, watching as he nodded his head, eyes skyward. She rested her chin on her knees, mulling it over.

So far, this year hadn't been bad. They were only two weeks into the semester, but there hadn't been any colossal fights. Since the fight that had occurred last year, after losing her best friend completely, Lily wasn't sure how she felt about it. She, at this point, could care less. He was joining the Game. She couldn't fight with him much, could she?

She watched him silently, as his eyes traced the branches above them, following stray leaves as they fell from the tree. When she remained silent, he glanced at her curiously, expecting the worst. When he caught her staring at him, he gave her a wildly cocky smile and winked. She scoffed in return, rolling her eyes. Deciding not to answer him, she stood, knocking grass and leaves from the back of her skirt.

"Where are you going?" he asked, raising a hand to cover the sun, so he could look at her.

"History," she informed him, stooping to reach for her bag. He remained seated, silently watching her.

"Why don't you skive off?" he questioned, smiling.

"Because I actually _like _History of Magic, Potter," she answered. He shook his head, smiling softly.

"Don't be late then," he advised, closing his eyes and raising his face towards the sun. Lily rolled her eyes, adjusting the strap on her bag and left.

"Oh! Lily," he called and she turned, curious. "Looking really forward to Thursday night," he called to her, waggling his eyebrows.

"Seriously, Potter?" she exclaimed, slapping a hand to her forehead in exasperation. The students around them stared curiously, beginning to talk behind their hands. "You're such a prat," she called back to him, whirling and lightly stomping her way back up to the castle.

* * *

I am SOSOSOSSOSO SOrry that it took to long to get that out..

I thiink i may start skipping ahead time wise.. I usually do day to day.. but i feel like that's not so necessary anymore? Maybe i'll switch it up.

I hope you enjoyed this! Reviews, please!


	12. Chapter 12

As an apology, came out with a new chapter even quicker! :)

* * *

The next morning dawned bright, but slightly cold. After Lily had returned from her quick shower, she shivered slightly as a somewhat strong gust of wind blew through the window, causing the curtains around each girls' bed to float gently about. She struggled a moment to shut the window nearest to her own bed, the pane creaking loudly as she tried to pull it down.

From beside her, Marlene rolled out of bed, huffing loudly. "Alright, here we go," she grinned, assisting Lily by dragging it shut. "Was that so hard?" Marlene asked, sitting back onto her bed and eyeing Lily with slight exasperation.

"I almost had it," Lily replied defensively, turning around to finish tucking in her shirt. Looking into her vanity, she used her wand to dry her hair, the long curls framing her face.

"I think we need to get more meat on those bones then," Marlene remarked, leaning over to poke Lily on her upper arm. "Then you would have had it completely."

Lily laughed, moving her arm out of her friend's reach. "Hey, not all of us are built with frames good enough for Quidditch."

"It's in my blood," Marlene gloated, flexing her arms and pretending to kiss her bicep. Lily laughed again, shaking her head. Marlene stood back up and stretched and Lily, for the countless time, couldn't help but be jealous of her friend's muscular, but feminine build. Marlene was tall and slender, with the ability to walk with grace and appear willowy.

"See something you like?" Marlene teased, twirling on one foot and flipping her hair.

"Nope, none whatsoever," Lily replied, grabbing a decorative pillow from her bed and chucking it at the dark haired girl. Marlene laughed, grabbing the pillow out of the air and tossing it right back at Lily. Who, not being prepared for the quick retaliation, got a face full of pillow. Lily's cheeks turned warm as she recovered, hearing more than just one person laugh.

"Nice one," Dorcas commented. "Very smooth."

"Ha, ha," Lily returned, throwing the small pillow back onto her own bed.

"I could never quite understand how you can have such good skills in the game."

"It's my cat-like reflexes," Lily informed her, nodding decisively. Dorcas laughed at her answer, running her wand over her hair.

"Right.. and I always thought cats landed on their feet if they ever fell?"

"I said reflexes, not coordination."

"Hm," Dorcas hummed, giving Lily a look of incredulity.

"Okay, I'm heading down to Potions," Lily called to the rest of the dormitory. The ones who were more awake bade her farewell, while the others merely made groaning.

Lily journeyed down to the Great Hall first, to grab a pastry to eat on her way. The morning was still relatively early and she only ran into a few classmates, greeting the younger students warmly. When she entered through the great doors, she spotted Sirius sitting at the Gryffindor table alone.

"Hello, hello," she greeted, dropping into the seat across from him.

"Good morning, Lily," he saluted, smiling widely.

"You're up quite early," she noted, pouring some coffee into a clean goblet. She smiled in content, watching as steam rose from the dark liquid. Closing her eyes, she breathed in the heavy smell.

"I could say the same for you," Sirius replied, raising his glass in a toast and she clinked her own against his.

"Thought I'd try something different," she shrugged, swallowing a large gulp of her coffee.

"I may as well say the same," he said, scooping up a spoonful of eggs into his mouth.

"Where's everyone else?" she asked, choosing a cheese danish off of a large plate.

"Still in the dorms," he answered, rather shortly. Lily raised in eyebrows in surprise, thrown off by his tone.

"Everything alright?" she inquired nonchalantly, taking another sip of her drink.

"Oh, yeah, of course. Just tired is all."

"Oh, okay," Lily replied, leaving it be.

"Family matters, that's all," Sirius continued, stabbing a piece of sausage, then bringing it up to eye level to study it.

"I know how that can go," Lily consoled, picking off a small piece of her danish and chewing it thoughtfully.

"Got to love them, eh?" he spoke, more rhetorically.

"They're family," Lily shrugged, raising an eyebrow in question.

"Or just a bunch of berks and gits," Sirius muttered, now looking lost in his own thoughts.

"That, too," said Lily, not quite sure what to say, seeing as he was clearly not happy about his 'family matters'. She wasn't one to pry or push, nor did Sirius seem the one to open up. "I guess I have to be going then..." she told him then, feeling rather awkward.

"Oh? Right, sure," Sirius said, coming back to himself. He gave her a wide, brilliant smile and saluted her farewell. Lily smiled and waved her goodbye, finding it interesting on how similar his and James's mannerisms seemed to be. She left him by himself, feeling slightly guilty, but carried on her way down to the Dungeons. She passed the Slytherins' common room with wariness, but seemed to make it to the potions classroom quickly.

She was not surprised to find that she was the first there. She meandered to her spot and took her time taking out her things, organizing them in her usual order. She pulled out her potions book last, opening to reread the chapter that they were currently covering.

"Lily," Severus greeted from above her, causing her to slightly jump."Sorry," he muttered quietly, taking up his seat beside her.

"No worries," she murmured, trying to remain pleasant, returning to her reading. She rested her head in her hand, tilting her body away from him. Stoutly, she remained ignoring him, flipping to the next page idly.

After he sighed loudly for the fourth time, she whirled on him, snapping her book shut loudly. "What?" she snapped, turning to face him. She felt satisfaction as he jumped, clearly startled. He looked at her with sad, but alert eyes.

"What?" she reiterated, waiting.

"I just.. I wanted to make sure you were okay," he told her, his long hair falling into his face. The pieces were greased together, standing out against his pale skin. Dark circles were smudged under his dark eyes. He looked exhausted.

"I'm fine," she answered shortly, reopening her book and struggling to find the page she was on last. "Is that it?" she asked blandly.

"I still care about you, Lily," he told her, leaning forward, though he now spoke to her hair covering her face. "I heard.."

"What?" she inquired, sounding disinterested. "What did you hear? That the bigoted Defense professor taught me a real nice lesson?" Her tone was rude and short, as Severus let out another long sigh.

"You have to be careful," Severus implored her, reaching forward to grab her hand. "You don't know what he can do."

Lily pulled her hand out his reach and looked at him sharply. "What do you mean? Is he, what, one of those followers? Trying to kill all mudbloods?" she spat at him. He winced and slightly cowered at her temper.

"No, no," he tried backtracking, glancing surreptitiously around the empty classroom. "He's just someone to watch out for," he told her, in a low voice.

"Seriously, Sev? Because I thought when he almost _paralyzed _me, he was trying to protect me."

"Lily, please, I can _protect_ you," Severus pleaded, reaching out and finally grabbing her hand. He held it tightly with both hands, pulling on it like a child until she looked at him.

"Let go," she ordered him, giving him a look filled with loathing. "Do you know what you're saying, Sev? You're admitting to being one of them, let _go,"_ she fumed, trying to release his grip. He held fast.

"Oh! What do we have here?" Slughorn called merrily, stepping into the classroom from his office. "An early, clandestine meeting before class?" he asked, his belly shaking as he silently giggled in delight. Lily froze as the large professor stared down at their clasped hands, an overjoyed expression on his face. "Class starts in ten minutes," he lightly warned them. "I'll just return to my office till then..." and he shut the door behind himself, but not before sending them one last double-sided smile.

"You're _disgusting_," she snarled, ripping her hand from his. Severus looked flabbergasted for a moment, clearly caught off guard by the professor's implicating tone.

"Don't ever touch me again," she threatened, feeling her cheeks burn like fire.

"Lily, no-"

"Don't talk to me," she told him, leaving no room for discussion. She gathered her things quickly, having trouble stuffing them all into her bag.

"Where are you going?" Severus asked, standing up and reaching for her.

"Don't," she snarled and he froze in his movements. Clutching her bag and rest of her things to her stomach, she moved to a desk in the back of the classroom, the furthest away from the front, away from her old best friend.

"But Slughorn.." Severus started, his tone forlorn.

"Screw him," Lily declared to herself, slamming her things onto the desk.

"But, Lily-"

"I said, _don't talk to me!"_ she cried, ripping her wand from her waistband and pointing it directly at Severus. He looked beyond surprised as he stood in the middle of the aisle, paused in mid-step. He raised his hands in surrender, hoping to sooth her. It took him a minute to open his mouth, but she stopped him, jabbing her wand in his direction.

"No," she spoke in a quiet voice. His expression fell, pain and despair etched across his face, but she stood strong. When he saw that she would not waver, he backed up slowly, nearly knocking over a chair, until he returned to the desk that he would now reside at alone. He stumbled as he tried to sat down backwards, catching himself and steadying his hands on the desk.

Satisfied, she lowered her wand and returned it to its rightful place at her hip, not bothering to tuck her shirt back in. Taking a deep breath, she sat down and began the process of pulling out her things again, organizing them into their right order in front of her. Potions was her second favorite class. She wouldn't let him ruin it.

This week was turning out to be her worst, she noted with interest.

Just like it would any other day, the other students began to trickle in slowly. Few noticed the redhead prefect sitting in the back of the class, diligently reading over her notes. She let her hair fall over her face as she read, roughly underlining specific entries and paragraphs that she knew would be important to remember later.

"Lily?" James asked in surprise. She looked up at him, craning her neck to see his face. Sirius stood beside him, giving her a curious look.

"What are you doing back here?" Sirius asked, glancing towards the front of the classroom, towards Severus.

"Thought I'd try something different," she responded breezily, circling a rather large paragraph in the book and pausing to scratch in a little note beside it.

"Ah, ha," Sirius mumbled, remembering their earlier conversation. James gave him a questioning look to elaborate, but Sirius only returned it with a confused shrug of his own.

"Everything alright, at least?" James asked her, looking down at the top of her head as she scribbled something in her book.

"Hmhm," she answered, twirling her quill in her hand.

"You know these are our seats right?" James pointed out, in a gentle voice.

This time, Lily looked back up at both of them, then back the desk she was sitting at. "Oh, shite, I'm sorry," she murmured, pushing herself back from the table. She bit back a sigh as she began to shuffle her papers together, before stuffing them into her book.

"No, no, that's okay," James stopped her, waving a hand to make her stop packing up her things. "There's two seats here; guess Siri and I just have to figure out who gets to be the lucky one who gets to join you today." He sent Lily a winning smile, while Sirius gave her her own wink.

"How do you figure that out?" Lily asked curiously.

"Yes, James, how _do_ we figure that out?" Sirius questioned, turning to his best friend.

"Oh," James grinned. "Just like how we normally do." They both dropped their bags by their feet, eyeing each other very seriously.

"What-" Lily was about to ask, just before they jumped into action. They began to wrestle, trying to reach the chair beside Lily first. At first, Lily was too shocked to do anything, as the boys seemed to be seriously fighting each other.

"Padfoot!"

"Bugger-"

"Le'go-"

"Ha!"

"Prick-"

"Bloody-"

The fighting stopped, but not until Sirius was hugging the seat of the chair, while James had a choke hold around his neck. They breathed heavily, both wide, crazy grins on their faces.

"Ha, I.. Win," Sirius breathed, using a finger to loosen his collar once James had let him go. James sat back on the floor, resting his elbows on his knees as he caught his breath. Sirius used the chair to pull himself up, releasing a long winded breath. He rolled his shoulder experimentally as he danced on the balls of his feet. He reached his hand out to James, offering to help him up.

"Good show, mate," James admitted, accepting Sirius' hand. He jumped up easily, shaking dust off of himself. The two boys turned to Lily, sharing the same look of pride.

"What.. what in the Merlin's beard was that?" Lily asked, still slightly shell-shocked. She threw her head back in laughter, clutching her stomach. "Are you two crazy?" she queried, giggling. The two boys looked pleased, but tried to pull off looking nonchalant.

"Only a little mad," Sirius answered her. James bent and retrieved both his and Sirius's bags from the floors. He handed Sirius his own, before motioning a farewell and finding the next closest empty chair. Lily noted it was next to a rather attractive Slytherin.

Sirius slide into his prized chair, smiling charmingly at Lily.

"I'll never understand you boys," Lily laughed, shaking her head. Sirius shrugged and begun to take out his own belongings. Lily noticed he only pulled out his book. "Aren't you going to take notes?" she asked, motioning towards her own notebook.

"Nah, no need to," Sirius chuckled. He tapped his temple with his fingers. "I take it in all up here." Lily snorted in response and Sirius only grinned at her amusement. "I don't get by with only my good looks," he told her.

"So, luck then?" Lily joked.

"Luck," Sirius agreed, leafing through his book now.

Slughorn chose that moment to walk in, smacking and rubbing his hands together to signal the beginning of his class. He faltered, however, when he noticed Severus sitting at the front table alone. Lily quickly turned her head down, pretending to stare down at her notes, as he turned his head to - no doubt- search for her. She let out of breath of relief as he decided not to bring attention to her, rather choosing just to start the lesson.

Each time Slughorn, or Severus, turned their heads to look at her, she just happened to be avidly interested in the notes she was taking. Once the time to begin working on assigned potions came, Lily was grateful to have something else than words to stare at. She jumped right in, breathing easier as she began to put the concoction together.

"So, want to tell me the reason for wanting something different?" Sirius asked, taking his time working on his own potion. He stirred it lazily with his wand.

"Not really," Lily answered honestly, dropping a leaf of a asphodel into her mortar, then pulverizing it cleanly. Sirius didn't push it, for which she was very grateful. "You should stir that three times counterclockwise now," she suggested, glancing over at his progress. Sirius looked over at her, before glancing down into his potion, raising an eyebrow in question

"It doesn't say that in the directions," he noted, checking his book.

"You read the directions?" she asked, looking at him in slight disbelief.

"Yes'm," he replied, pulling a slightly offended look. "Three, you say?"

"Hmhm," she hummed, sprinkling the crushed asphodel into her cauldron.

"You're the potions expert," he drawled, doing as she suggested. He looked down into his cauldron curiously. "I see no difference," he told her.

"You wouldn't, but now you don't have to do steps six to eight, or thirteen to sixteen."

"You're pranking me, aren't you?" he accused, staring at her in suspicion. She laughed and shook her head.

"I'm the potions expert, aren't I?" she giggled. "Trust me, I'm telling the truth," she promised. He cast her one more look of suspicion, but took her word for it. They continued in silence and Lily paused to wipe sweat from her forehead.

"Lover's quarrel?" Slughorn whispered, only it wouldn't really be classified as a whisper, as it was loud enough for most of the classroom to hear. He had came around from the back to check on her progress, but Lily know that wasn't the only thing he wanted. The professor, as she had come to learn, lived on gossip.

"No, sir," she said through clenched teeth, concentrating on stirring her potion just right. Her cheeks, already pink from working in the heat, stained darker as she felt the eyes of her other classmates on her.

"Oh, now, don't worry," the professor crooned, in a way Lily thought he assumed was a comforting tone. "Things seem to work themselves out in time," he advised.

"Of course, Professor," she simpered, straining to remain polite.

"Mr. Black! It seems that you're quite ahead! And what a wonderful job you're doing!" Slughorn exclaimed, clapping a heavy hand onto Sirius's shoulders. And though Sirius himself was tall and very muscular, he still seemed to stagger under the weight of the professors touch. Or, Lily thought, stagger under the notion of actually receiving a compliment from Slughorn himself.

"Thank you, Professor," Sirius spluttered, giving Lily a wild look.

"Now, m'boy, not receiving any help from our very own Miss Evans, are you?" Slughorn inquired, shaking Sirius slightly.

"No, Professor," Lily answered for him, giving him her brilliant, student smile. Slughorn smiled in return, winking overly graciously, before turning and continuing down the aisle. Once he was out of earshot, Lily shuddered.

"Eugh," she mumbled.

"You can say that again," Sirius said, chuckling. He mocked scrubbing his shoulder off with a rag.

"_Eugh_," Lily repeated, with more emphasis. Sirius let out a loud bark of laughter as he threw down the rag. As Lily looked at him, she caught James further down the row, his expression blank as he stared at them. Once he caught her gaze, he smiled and gave a small wave. Lily returned the smile, turning back to her cauldron.

"You really weren't lying," Sirius pondered aloud, looking down into his cauldron.

"No. Why would I?" Lily asked, slightly hurt at his skepticism. Sirius seemed to catch her hurt look and immediately apologize.

"I just meant, since, well, we've never gotten along rule-abiding wise," he explained lamely. "Those tricks we'd play on you and your friends..." he continued.

Lily waved her hand, staring down at her potion intently. "I'm not one for complete revenge," she joked lightly, still slightly hurt. "I wouldn't do something like _that_," she murmured. She finished off her potion, turning down the burning and waited for it to cool. _  
_

"So, what's with the 'lover's quarrel'?" Sirius brought up casually, adding a sprig to his potion. It steamed and sizzled, bubbling ominously.

"You were suppose to take off the leaves," Lily informed him, watching in interest. "Add half a starthistle," she ordered, pointing out the ingredient to him on the table. "Only half, though," she warned him. He nodded, cutting the long plant in half, then dropped it into the cauldron. It bubbled only a moment longer, turning the pictured color and texture.

He looked at her with a mixture of respect and admiration. Using a ladle, she scooped her potion into a flask and topped it off, twisting the lid on tightly. Keeping her eyes head of her, she dropped her potion off on Slughorn's desk and then returned to her own, taking her seat and resuming her reading. Sirius turned his in shortly after and they sat in companionable silence.

Once the bell rang, signaling the end of the class, Lily began to collect her things quickly, hoping to get out before Severus had a chance to stop her. By accident, she looked up towards him, catching his eyes. This seemed to spur him on, giving him permission to talk to her. She let out a deep, angry breath, struggling, once again, to try and stuff her book into her bag.

"You okay?" James asked, stepping into her line of vision. She nodded as he greeted Sirius, talking over Sirius's sudden enthusiasm for potion making. Lily, flooded with relief, watched as Severus took note of Sirius and James standing right next to her. His expression turned angry, his eyes dark, but he turned and headed straight for the door.

"Right, Lily?"

She turned, surprised, to find both both looking at her curiously. "Sorry?" she asked, swinging her bag over her shoulder.

"I was just telling Jamsie here that I completed that in record time with no help whatsoever," Sirius bragged, winking at Lily from over James's shoulder.

"Oh, right," Lily went along with it, smiling with mirth. "No help. Just luck."

"I don't believe you tossers for one moment," James stated, laughing in Sirius's face. The boys allowed her to walk first, letting her lead them back to the dormitories.

"Believe what you want," Sirius sniffed.

-:-

"I'm too excited," Dorcas moaned from her spot on the couch. She kicked her legs restlessly.

"Hey! Watch it," Alice cried, trying to steady her mug of hot cocoa. "Yes, yes, we all know you're excited. We all are."

"Damn right," Marlene murmured, flipping a page in her transfiguration book.

"Time will go faster if you don't think about it," Lily suggested, embellishing her last sentence on her own essay. They all seemed to glance up at the clock at the same time. 8:13. They still had four more hours till they all met in the Entrance hall. Lily had to admit, even she felt excited, with a dash of nervousness.

"I don't think I can stop thinking about it," Emmeline admitted, smiling secretively. Lily returned the small, nodding only a fraction. Like they did every night of the game, each girl took their turn heading up to their dorm room. From across the common room, the boys talked loudly, clearly excited. Lily rolled her eyes, wishing they'd keep it quiet. As the time ticked by, Marlene bade her farewell and left to go upstairs, but not before sharing an exciting smile with Lily.

When Lily was the last girl left, she began to stack up her books, collecting them into her arms. Self consciously, she walked over to the group of boys sitting by the fire. James was the first to notice her, shushing the rest of his small group and motioning as she walked towards them.

"Hello, Lily," he greeted, smiling brilliantly. His knee bounced wildly as he leaned forward.

"Hello, boys," she smiled, readjusting the books in her arms. "Just wanted to let you know," she dropped her voice, "We're meeting in the Entrance Hall at midnight."

"Sounds bloody wonderful," Sirius declared.

"Can't wait," Remus supplied, grinning. Peter nodded, but Lily couldn't help how nervous he looked.

"Brilliant. Be there or be square," Lily beamed, hugging her books to her chest. She frowned when all but Remus looked at her in confusion.

"Muggle expression," Remus explained to them in a quiet voice, smiling at Lily reassuringly. Comprehension dawned on their faces, as they nodded at Lily, pretending to understand what she meant. Lily only laughed and shook her head.

"I'll see you later, then," she told them, spinning on her foot and heading up the girl's dormitory stairs.

* * *

Plus, it was my birthday this weekend, so i wanted to give more than one chapter!

And THANK YOU "Im secretly annoyed with you." Im horrible at keeping track of days in this darn story.. I'm very sorry.

But oohohohohho, game next chapter? :D BE READY.

Review please.


	13. Chapter 13

Here's the chapter you've all been waiting for it seems!  
I hope you like it!

* * *

The sight before Lily as she emerged through the door into the dormitory made her smile. Normally, her friends would be solemn, serious soldiers. The Game was sacred. It was a time to remain calm, cool, and collected.

Tonight, however, seemed the exception. The girls walked around, changing, talking, unable to sit still. Marlene was sitting in front of her vanity, pulling her long hair back into a french braid, the plait hitting just below her middle back. Dorcas was standing near her wardrobe, trying to find the darkest set of clothes she owned. Alice and Emmeline sat next to each other on a bed, talking in low, excited whispers.

When Marlene noticed Lily enter through her mirror, she turned, grinning excitedly. "Did you tell them?"

"Yep. I told them to meet us in the Entrance Hall at midnight."

"Good," Marlene grinned, clapping her hands together in excitement. Lily laughed and began to shuck off her skirt and shirt. Standing in her underwear, she rifled through her trunk till she found a pair of black leggings and a long sleeved, grey shirt. She threw them onto the bed, then reached up to tie back her hair into a messy bun.

Marlene whistled lowly from behind her. "Is that your tactic, Evans? Distract them with nakedness?"

"Oh, totally," Lily confessed jokingly, shaking her just underwear clad hips as she snapped the ponytail around her hair. "Think it'll work?"

"I think it may cause more than just a distraction," Marlene hinted, sending her a wink.

"I think it'll cause a cold," Emmeline joked. "It always gets rather drafty in the corridors.."

"Oh, shut up," Lily demanded, grabbing her leggings and sliding her feet through them. "As much as I would like to win, that wouldn't be my first strategic choice." She hopped as she pulled the elastic over her thighs and hips, the band snapping against her stomach once she let go. Marlene took a running start and jumped onto Lily's bed, landing directly on her sweater.

"But it'd be interesting," Marlene hinted, smiling wickedly. She glanced up innocently at Lily, while her feet dangled off the bed.

"Oh, come on, give me my shirt," Lily commanded, holding out her hand. "It is rather drafty in _here_, you know."

"I don't have your shirt," Marlene replied, picture of innocence.

"Shut up, Mar. It's underneath you," Lily pointed out, a sleeve sticking out from under Marlene's belly. "Give it here."

"Nah," Marlene answered, laying spread eagled now on Lily's bed.

"I'll hurt you," Lily warned, shaking her small fist. Marlene only cackled, making sure to stuff the sweater further under her belly. Exasperated, Lily jumped onto the bed, landing onto Marlene's back. The dark haired girl shrieked, trying to roll over to knock Lily off.

"Geroff!" she cried.

"Nope!" Lily sang, struggling to stay on top her best friend. She was straddling her back backwards, so that she faced her feet. Trying to reach under Marlene, she had to dodge her friend's heels, as they kicked dangerously close to her face.

"Stop!" Marlene half cried, half laughed as she was being tickled in the process.

"Give me my shirt!" Lily demanded again, still struggling. Marlene had now reached under her stomach and was holding onto the sweater as if for dear life.

"Never!" Marlene shouted, cackling again. Thinking fast, Lily decided to go for pain now. Clenching her hand in a fist, she swung.

"OW! Holy FUCK! _Lily!"_ Marlene wailed and Lily let her finally roll over onto her back. Lily plucked the unprotected sweater from the bed and went to jump off the bed, attempting to get as far away as she could from her friend. With one hand, Marlene reached out and grabbed Lily's ankle, halting her attempt to jump off the bed. Lily half landed on the bed, half off. She tumbled over the edge, managing to bang her elbow against a poster.

"Oh, ow, ow, ow," she cried, rolling on the floor and clutching her elbow. "Soft spot, oh no," she whined, feeling the numbness spread down her arm.

"What the hell are you two doing?" Dorcas asked from across the room. Marlene's shouting and wailing had already gotten the attention of the other two girls.

"She stole my sweater," Lily stuttered, torn between laughing and crying. She was sprawled on the stone floor, only in a pair of leggings and a bra. Emmeline, Dorcas, and Alice all looked at her strangely as she clutched her elbow savagely.

"Did not," Marlene argued, her voice muffled as she rocked in a fetal position.

"Why are you holding your arse?" Emmeline asked her, thoroughly confused.

"Lily punched me on my cheek!" Marlene wailed. "It aches like a mother fucker!"

"Lily," Alice stammered, trying to hold back a giggle. "Did you punch Marlene on her bum?"

"She wouldn't give me my sweater!" Lily cried, pulling herself up to sit and testing out her elbow. She stretched it experimentally, rubbing at the joint.

"Oh, dear Merlin, Lily," Marlene whimpered, rolling back onto her stomach. She rubbed her own wound, trying to sooth the pain. "You're knuckles are like razor blades."

Lily flexed her hand in interest, making a fist to study it. "Just bony," Lily reported, grinning proudly as she scooped her sweater off of the floor. "I told you I'd hurt you," Lily snickered, pulling the sweater over her head.

"Yeah, yeah," Marlene growled, struggling to stand up from the bed. "Oh, that's so going to leave a bruise.." Lily smiled proudly.

"Shouldn't we be saving the fighting for the Game?" Dorcas wondered aloud, though looking thoroughly amused.

"Just a little warm up," Lily jested, reaching back up to pile her hair atop her head again. Mentally, Lily thought that it also helped the time pass. She felt giddy and excited, but hated the fact that the nervousness in her stomach grew. "So, have we decided if we should have partners..? Teams? Each man for them self?"

The girls looked at each other in question.

"Maybe we should talk to them first?" Emmeline pointed out. "They are the ones who are new..."

"Guess we will," Lily breathed, after no one made any other comments.

At a quarter till, the group of girls stood simultaneously. "Ready?" Lily asked them.

"Yes," they all replied in unison.

Unusually, the girls went silent as they made their way down to the common room. Multiple times, Lily checked over her shoulder to make sure she could still see their shadows in the almost non-existent light. This time, Lily was able to avoid the short coffee table and she smiled in satisfaction as she side-stepped it. Right into a living, breathing person.

Her high-pitched scream was cut off as someone clapped a hand over her mouth. From behind her, she heard her friends made sounds of concern and question.

"Merlin, Evans, it's just me," James whispered harshly, his face very close to hers. Angered by feeling fear, Lily tore his hand from her mouth and jerked it away.

"Jesus H. Christ, Potter," she hissed, clutching at her heart. "Don't scare a person like that."

"Trust me, if I knew you'd scream like a banshee, I would have steered clear," James muttered, chuckling darkly.

"Wonder what else could make you scream," Sirius joked from somewhere to James's left. Disgusted, Lily swung out at the dark shadow she assumed to be Sirius.

"Ow! Lily! Bleeding seriously?" Marlene cried out.

"Sorry, Mar," Lily said, biting her lip to stop from laughing. "Wait, how'd you know that was me?"

"Your knuckles," she replied darkly. Lily brought her fist to her mouth, attempting to cover up her laughter.

"Shall we head down to the Entrance Hall, then?" Remus asked quietly, in the direction of the portrait hole. The now rather large group made sounds of agreement, then struggled momentarily as they filed out through the portrait hole. Once out in the corridor, the light from the waxing moon filtered in through the windows, allowing the group of sixth years to find their way easier.

"Alright, here we are," James said, once they made it into the large, empty hall. "Let's get started."

"Wait," Lily said, tucking away stray hairs out of her face. "We haven't decided if we should do teams, or what."

"If we did partners, we'd be uneven," Emmeline pointed out.

"Teams would be interesting. Teams of three?" Sirius suggested.

"That'd be fun," Alice agreed, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I'd like that," Peter spoke up as he bounced on the balls of his feet, clearly nervous.

"We could still split up," Dorcas noted, turning to Lily. "If we somehow accidentally hit one of our own team members, it just wouldn't count."

"I don't know if I can get the scoring spell to work like that..." Lily admitted, going over the spell in her head.

"I don't doubt that you could," James told her, smiling reassuringly.

"How would we pick the teams?" Marlene questioned. Lily frowned, remembering her days from primary school. Physical education had not been her strong suit; team sports being her weakest link. She hardly ever gotten chosen first.

"Just at random," Remus said.

"How do we do that?" Emmeline asked him.

"Count out to three?" he answered, though it was more a question. "Ones with ones, twos with twos, and three's with threes." Lily shrugged, finding the idea simple, but effective.

"One," Sirius said, starting the count.

"Two," James counted clockwise.

"Three," Peter spoke quietly.

"One," Marlene continued.

"Two," Lily said.

"Three," Dorcas inserted.

"One," Alice reported.

"Two," Emmeline said.

"Three," Remus finished.

"I'll beat you," Marlene gloated quietly, giving Lily an evil look.

"You wish," she replied, smirking.

"Okay, so, Team One: Sirius, Marlene, and Alice. Two: James, Lily, and Emmeline. Three: Peter, Dorcas, and I. That seemed to work," Remus remarked. "Lily?"

"I think that might be easier for the spell work. Thanks, Remus," she smiled, pulling her wand out from her waistband. She tapped her chin in thought, realizing she could use the team numbers instead of the initials. "Okay everyone, let's really get this started."

She went over the rules, Sirius tapping his foot impatiently the entire speech.

"How do we notify everyone if we run into a teacher?" Remus asked curiously.

"Just tap your wand against the spell twice," she told him.

"One tap caused too many problems," Alice joked.

"Okay, everyone get into their teams," Lily ordered, watching as everyone shuffled into their smaller groups. James came stand on her right, as Emmeline took her place on her left. "Okay, Emmeline, want to go first?"

"Absolutely," she replied, lifting her sleeve to reveal her bare arm. Lily lightly grabbed her wrist, turning over so it exposed her inner forearm. Lily thought for a moment, before readying her wand.

"_Reor et praesto tessera,_" she murmured, twisting the wand in a tighter, neater loop, before touching Emmeline's skin. Gold lettering bloomed and Lily smiled as she recognized her own handwriting. The numbers for the teams somehow turned out in roman numbering, but Lily smiled, pleased none the less. She turned to James next.

"Arm please," she requested, smiling up at him. He held it out willingly and easily. Like she did Emmeline, Lily grabbed onto his wrist and turned it over to reveal his inner forearm. She reached forward to push his sleeve up further, his muscular, long arm feeling foreign in her hand. His skin was hot against her cold fingers.

"_Reor et praesto tessera,_" she repeated, copying her movements from before. Her handwriting, which had always looked so large against the other girls' arms, looked rather small and delicate against his tan skin. "There you go," she told him, allowing him to take his arm back from her. He ran his fingers over the glowing letters, looking at it in wonder.

"It's warm," he mused. He flexed the muscles, but the golden letters remained stable.

"It'll kinda.. heat up briefly to signal the five minute warning," she told him. "It's uncomfortable the first few times, but you will get used to it."

He nodded, pulling his sleeve back down his arm. The smile he gave her made her turn away.

She applied the spell to the rest of her friends quickly, spelling Peter's arm last. She tried to discreetly wipe her hand on the thigh of her leggings after she let his arm go, sweat glistening on his skin. Sirius caught her actions and he gave her a humorous look, wriggling his eyebrows.

From beside her, Emmeline cleared her throat lightly, motioning James and Lily towards her. "What's the game plan?" she asked and Lily found it comical as the girl had to alternate from looking up at James, to down at Lily.

"Divide and conquer," Lily suggested, shrugging. James laughed at her choice of words. "Any suggestions, _Captain_?" she grumbled.

"No, no," he chuckled, trying to quickly reassure her. "Divide and conquer. Sounds good to me."

Emmeline nodded, deciding the final vote. Lily rolled her eyes, turning away from their small "team".

"Okay, let us begin the countdown," Lily grinned, rubbing her hands together as she spoke to the group. Holding her wand to her own arm, she started the timer while speaking aloud. "10... 9... 8..."

And they all began to back away from each other, now silently counting down in their own minds.

_7... 6... 5..._

Lily took a deep breath, nodding a farewell to each teammate as she turned her back on the middle of the circle. From beside her, she heard James let out a low chuckle.

_4... 3... 2... 1..._

"Go!" Lily called, trying to keep in her own excited giggle, as she took off towards the Transfiguration classrooms, knowing beyond the corridor housed a set of stairs that led to the next floor up. From there, she would improvise. She stuck to the walls, running, spurred on by the adrenaline running through her veins. She paused occasionally in random nooks and niches to make sure she wasn't being followed.

The staircase was very similar to the one that led up to Dumbledore's office; they remained hidden until spelled to reveal themselves. The only main difference was that they were probably a third of the size. Though the space was tight and the ceiling low, she took the steps two at a time, welcoming the burning feeling in her thighs.

The small set of stairs led into the Rear Entrance hall, but Lily crouched, surveying the large, low ceilinged room for any signs of movement. The room was carpeted, the walls lined with bookshelves that reached the ceilings. Satisfied that the room was empty, she slinked out from behind the stairwell's entrance. She kept her back against the wall as she headed towards the large entryway, her hip sliding along one of the wooden bookshelves.

She crouched again as she reached archway, peeking her head out of the entry and squinting into the darkened corridor. Portraits lined the corridor's walls. Their frames reflected little light from the windows, the inhabitants seemingly asleep. Lily knew to think better as she would catch a small movement here and there. She strained to hear anything, but the corridor remained silent.

Venturing out, she stepped into the corridor, pressing herself against the wall as close as she could. She paused, waiting for someone to jump out and begin an assault of spells. Nothing and no one came. Growing more confident, she moved forward, running her hand along the wall as she went. She froze when she heard the rustle of fabric, turning her head back the way she came. Her eyes searched in the darkness, but still found no movement.

As she began to turn back around, she caught the slightest movement in the corner of her eye.

"_Cesso!_" someone whispered fiercely, the spell originating from the dark corner. The incantation came directly at her, but she dropped slightly, falling back against the stone wall. The spell exploded against the stone and momentarily blinded her, bright blue sparks falling into her face. The stone scrapped against her shoulder blades as she attempted to regain her balance.

"_Cesso!"_ she retaliated, blindly sending the spell towards the corner where she knew her offender was hiding. They dove away, just missing the spell. Remus fell forward, crouched on all fours, as he grinned in exhilaration. Recovering, he scrambled towards the Rear Entrance's hall, heading the way she had just came. He was gone in seconds, his dark shadow disappearing down in the staircase behind him.

She laughed breathlessly, leaning back into the wall. Her hand ran across her forehead, brushing hair out of her face, as she compared his technique to the other girls. In previous games, the girls fought till someone went down. This, she decided, would be something she'd have to get used it.

Deciding to hurry before he actually did change his mind to come back for her, she departed down the hall. She tiptoed pass the Infirmary's doors, staying low to the ground. Only shortly after, she passed the History of Magic's set of classrooms, pausing and freezing every time she thought to hear a noise. As she pondered on it, she shook herself, feeling much more anxious now with more players added to the game. Normally, she would know each of her friends' strategies.. but with more players thrown in the mix, she knew she couldn't rely on old tactics.

"_Cesso!" _she heard Marlene's voice ring out from behind her. Lily spun, astonished to find the girl behind her. The spell hit her directly in the middle of her chest. She froze, a curse on the tip of her tongue. As Marlene emerged from a small alcove that housed a Knight in armor, she rubbed her hands together and cackled maniacally.

Lily found it an amusing habit her friend was beginning to pick up.

"Still think we're not going to beat you?" Marlene grinned.

"_Cesso!"_ Emmeline called from further down the hall. The spell hit Marlene in her side, causing the girl's expression to freeze in surprise.

"Yes, she does," Emmeline laughed, answering on behalf of Lily. She took off down the hall, throwing a thumbs-up at Lily as she went. Seconds later, Lily unfroze, openly laughing at Marlene.

"She got you good," she told the dark-haired, temporary statue as she began to back away. She twiddled her fingers in a small goodbye, grinning widely as she spun and took off after Emmeline.

Her teammate had disappeared, but Lily veered off towards a corridor that led back around to the changing staircases. However much she hated them, she knew they were an easy way to get someone off your tail. As she reached them, gripping the banister tightly, she looked up at the great expanse, watching as the stairs slowly changed direction at their own will.

From a landing about two floors above her, she caught someone moving. A smile slid onto her face as she recognized Dorcas's platinum blonde hair being ruffled by a draft. Lily stayed close to the ground as she ascended the stairs, nearly crawling on all fours. As she watched, Dorcas remained squatting in the entryway, her head weaving in and out of sight. Lily lined herself up with the railing, using it as a guide for her wand as she pointed it at the unsuspecting girl.

"_Cesso,"_ she whispered, the spell hitting its intended target seconds later. Lily grinned catlike, feeling very pleased. She zigzagged up the staircases, riding along with the last one, before jumping the small space onto fourth floor landing. Even when she was yards inside the corridor, she could still hear Dorcas's howl of anger when she unfroze.

As she passed a random storage room, she ran into Remus again. Looking more confident, he fought head on with less cautiousness than before. They dodged each other's spells for a short time. His wolf-like grin made her worried, but she was able to dodge and duck his advances with eased practice.

"You're good," he huffed, straightening after dodging one of her one spells.

"Thanks," she replied, just as breathless. She jerked back away from a streak of blue, knocking her elbow against the stone wall. She hissed in pain, firing back the spell at him. It caught him on the shoulder and he froze in an awkward battle stance.

She jumped past him, whispering a sincere, but happy apology. She was glad to see that he was beginning to become more comfortable with the battle aspect.

Lily passed by the library doors next, pausing to crouch in the corner of the large doorway. Further ahead, she knew there was a small hallway that led back to the staircases, filled with odd, jagged corners. Between the doors and the hallway though, were multiple hidden alcoves, all covered in tapestries. This was the area that always truly tested her stealth.

She crept forward, her sneakers feeling awkwardly heavy as she pressed herself against the wall. She breathed silently through her nose, refraining from huffing in annoyance as more of her hair fell from her haphazard bun. Her eyes scanned the corridor ahead, checking for any movement in her peripherals. She froze as she caught the tapestry to her right slightly flutter. Her fingers tightened around her wand.

Now, any other student would assume that it was just a draft or a breeze. But Lily knew different.

The fact that Peter's worn, dirty white sneaker stuck out from under the cloth confirmed it.

She darted towards it, tearing it away from the wall to reveal an overly surprised Peter, caught unaware. He lightly squeaked as he rose his hands in surrender. His eyes widened in fright and Lily felt guilty.

"I'm so sorry," Lily told him sincerely, before raising her wand and freezing him. "Really am," she added, folding the cloth tapestry back over him. Deciding to not take any chances, Lily fled from the corridor, knowing that Remus was still further back somewhere, lurking. She grinned as she realized just how exciting this really was. She found herself surprised at how much she was beginning to like the mix of people.

Time passed quickly then, as she sleuthed her way around on the same floor, pausing and hiding in various small groves and alcoves. At one point, she found herself hiding behind a Knight in Armor as both Peeves and then Remus passed by her. She slipped out from behind her metal savior, no longer able to hear Remus's footsteps or Peeves's cackles.

As she rounded the last corner that led back to the staircases, she let out a small shriek as a bright blue streak flew passed her face. She dodged another, dropping to her knees and then crab-crawling backwards back around the corner to cover herself. She sat back against the wall and cursed silently, peeking just a little around the corner.

"I know its you, Lily," Dorcas called to her, sending another spell her way. Lily huffed and moved to stand, surveying the way she came to check for any opposing parties. This was a situation that Lily knew she'd have to charge, taking the offense. Preparing herself, she breathed deeply, wand at the ready.

She leapt out from behind the wall, pointing her wand and randomly shooting the spell in a way that, she hoped, would catch Dorcas off-guard.

"Whoa, hey!" James exclaimed, ducking his head just in time. He stood above Dorcas, who sat frozen, crouched against the wall.

"Sorry," Lily smiled with chagrin.

His hair was wildly messy- more so than normal- but he had a wild, ecstatic look in his eyes. He held his hand out to her.

"Let's go," he insisted, grabbing her hand and pulling her towards the way she had came. His hand gripped her fingers tightly, the skin warm against her own small fingers.

"No, no," she whispered, knowing that they didn't have much time until Dorcas unfroze. She tugged on his arm as he basically dragged her. "I think Peter, Remus, and Dorcas tagged this floor as their base. I already ran pass Remus and Peter back there," she said quickly, grateful that he at least decided to slow down. "We've got to go that way," Lily insisted.

He huffed, but nodded once, changing direction swiftly. He hadn't let go of her hand, but led her towards the staircases. When they reached the landing, James released his tight grip on her hand to lean over the railing.

"We should go down," he said, a captain's eyes scanning the field.

"I'll go up," Lily told him, as she began a dash towards the staircase that led up. "Ugh," she gasped, getting jerked back as he reached out and grabbed her hand again. "_What_?" she hissed, craning her neck to look up into his face.

"We should stick together," he declared, dropping her hand. Lily, for a split second, missed the warmth of it in the cool draft.

"I thought we chose to 'divide and conquer'?" she pointed out.

"Better to stick together," he insisted again.

They both let out similar noises of surprise as a burst of blue sparks hit the railing in front of them. They ducked together, before James motioned for her to move up the stairs. When she didn't move, he then pushed her to run, his hands pressing against her back.

"Go, go, go," he ordered, letting out a manic, but carefree laugh. He followed behind her as they bent low, climbing the steps. They barely avoiding another shot of blue sparks. "Quicker!" he laughed.

"I'm trying!" Lily cried back in return, feeling her thighs burn in exertion. Her foot missed a step, causing her knee to slam painfully into the stone step below her. She cried out, almost stumbling backwards. James caught her easily, righting her on the steps hastily, gently urging her forward.

As they made it to the top of the landing, though her knee was throbbing, she turned to run down the hallway. James stopped her by grabbing her around the waist, nearly lifting her off her feet.

"One more," he said, swinging her around back towards the stairs. She let out a noise of frustration, but complied his order, driven by the grip he held tightly on her waist as they ran. "It was Sirius," he informed her, catching his breath easily as they finally made it to the fifth floor landing and hid just inside the hallway. Lily huffed, swallowing air in mouthfuls. How had she never gotten use to this? She paced back and forth, trying to walk off the pain in her knee.

"All right there?" he grinned, running a hand through his hair, pushing the hair off of his forehead. She noticed with slight selfish satisfaction his skin glistened with a light sheen of sweat. "Is your knee okay?"

Lily waved him off, conspicuously trying to massage a stitch in her side. Although he stood excited, a proud, childish grin seemingly permanently painted on his lips, he still looked concerned.

"Where should we go next? Sirius is probably going to come follow us," he speculated, bracing himself against the wall and peeking around the corner to check for any signs of pursuit. Lily couldn't help but smile as he reminded her of the times she'd watch reruns of _James Bond _with her mother. His dark brown hair looked black in the barely lit hallway and although he was slightly crouched, he was still able to tower over her. His wand was held tightly in his hand, at his thigh as though it were a gun.

"What?" he asked, catching her amused smile.

"Nothing," she answered quickly, turning to check out the other end of the hallway. "We should split up," she suggested. "It'll be harder for them to get us," she added, feeling the need to explain. He stared at her a moment, his gaze intense. Lily tried not to fidget, instead reaching up to tighten her bun.

"Okay," he said, giving a short curt nod. Lily stepped forward at the same time he did, causing them to awkwardly try to side-step each other. They laughed, though Lily couldn't help but think hers sounded nervous. "I can go towards the Prefect's bathroom," he said.

"I'll go towards the Muggle Studies classroom," she said, clearing her throat. They both chuckled again, turning their opposite ways down the corridor.

"Good luck, teammate!" he called to her, already beginning to jog lightly.

Lily didn't respond, but turned her head to watch him disappear. She took a deep breath, falling into step along side the wall, and carried on down the corridor. The ceilings of this corridor rose high, causing her footsteps to echo loudly. Lily winced, trying to lighten her steps. Turning to hide inside an small alcove, she pulled her sleeve back to check the scores.

She smiled eagerly, noticing that she, Emmeline and James were first in place. Sirius, Marlene, and Alice followed, with Remus, Dorcas, and Peter falling last. Lily nodded contently to herself, silently praising Emmeline. She wondered how many shots James had taken. Pulling the dark sleeve back over her wrist, she sat back on her haunches, peering around the corners before she crept out of her temporary hiding place.

Her pace increased as she became aware of how little time they had left. Though her legs felt tired, she felt a renewed sense of energy and couldn't help but grinning excitedly to herself. The night was not turning out a disaster as she thought it would.

"Oh!" she gasped, running head long into someone's back. At first, she thought it was James again, as the person she ran into was about the same height and build. Sirius was the one to whirl around though, his longer, black hair falling into his eyes. He looked just as shocked to see her as she was to see him. He recovered quickly, beginning to smile wickedly. Lily breathed deeply, trying to gain back the breath that had been knocked out of her.

"I don't think that's how you taught me to play this game," Sirius teased. Lily laughed, shaking her head.

"I never said physical, accidental force was out," she teased back and his brows rose as he continued to smile in amusement.

"So how do we continue? Shall we call a draw?" he asked, his smile growing into a smirk. "We could always duel."

"Technically, this is what this game is," Lily informed him, smiling wildly. "_Cesso,"_ she spelled, touching her wand to his chest. "And you've just lost," she added, grinning madly. He stood frozen before her and she decided to high-tail it out of there quickly, knowing he was the type to come back for revenge.

She made it back around to the stairs in a short amount of time, having pushed herself as hard as she could. She paused, contemplating on going up or down. She stalled, hearing loud, heavy footsteps coming back from down the hall. She cursed, damning Sirius's long strides.

Down, she decided, stepping out onto a moving staircase. She made haste, skipping down the steps and waiting for at the very edge for the staircase to attach to the landing. From above her, she saw Sirius slide onto the landing, nearly running into the stone railing. He spotted her quickly and almost comically sprang forward towards the stairs she had just descended.

She lunged onto the next moving staircase in one leap. Sirius hurled the spell at her, the bright blue streak almost striking her arm. She shrieked unintentionally and flinched, trying to concentrate on the steps as she ran down them, trying not to slip. Sirius's boots made loud thump-like sounds as he chased her and she found herself too nervous to look back and see how close he was. She stopped and danced uneasily at the bottom step, open air in front of her, feeling as if the staircases were joined in on their game.

Only they weren't on her side.

Like she had in the previous game, her impatience grew too strong. She took a deep breath, braced herself, and flung herself forward, leaping out into the open air. From behind her, she heard Sirius give a great, surprised shout. Her stomach moved to her throat as she felt herself drop in air, the landing below rising up to meet her too quickly.

Despite having done this maneuver multiple times previously, she had somehow seemed to underestimate the distance between herself and the landing's edge. Lily realized her mistake when the ground seemed to almost be just a bit further out of reach than necessary. Instead of falling onto the landing like she had before, she almost missed it; her upper body slammed into the edge, knocking the breath out of her, the impact jarring. Her arms slammed into the stone, knocking her wand from her hand. It skidded a few feet in front of her, out of reach.

She struggled for a moment as she began to slide from the landing, her feet dangling in air. Moving quickly, she kicked her feet out, scrambling to pull herself onto the landing fully. The tips of her fingers felt raw as she tried to claw herself up. By some miracle, she was able to pull herself up, her elbows and knees being her anchor as she struggled. Lily could feel the fabric of her clothes being torn as she crawled, rolling over onto her back as soon as she was fully on the landing.

Her laugh sounded insane to her own ears as she took inventory of her body, knowing that her ribs and arms would pay for her choice of actions.

She grinned though, unable to register the pain fully as the adrenaline once again thrummed in her veins. When she looked up, propped up on her elbows, Sirius's expression was one of disbelief and awe. He remained shocked still as the staircase he stood on continued to move, staring down at her, speechless.

She jumped up, not as fast as she would like, but twiddled her fingers in a goodbye to him, much like she did Marlene earlier in the night. She reached down to grab her wand and made haste down the corridor.

The hallway was empty as she traveled down it, back towards the Rear Entrance hall. She felt like letting out a whoop as a familiar warmth washed over her arm, alerting the players of the five minute warning. As her jog slowed, she began to feel the sting of aches and scratches on elbows and knees, but forced them to the back of her mind. Her main concern was getting back to the Entrance Hall without getting hit.

Which, it turned out, was fairly easy. She danced down the stairs, still on alert, but found no movement. She assumed that everyone must still be on the upper floors of the castles. Deciding to take her time down the corridor, she slowed to a walk, passing by the Transfiguration classroom silently. No one came across her. The portraits' inhabitants still dozed peacefully, unaware of the late night adventurer as she walked on.

When she entered into the Entrance Hall, she was surprised to find that she was the last one back. Emmeline greeted her with a bright smile, gifting her with another thumbs up. Lily laughed breathlessly, looking down to her arm that warmed. Time was up.

"Just in time," Dorcas noted rather sourly.

"Like always, it seems," Emmeline smiled, nudging Lily's elbow with her own.

"Ow," Lily chuckled, rubbing at her elbow. "I'm really surprised everyone made it back in time," she stated, mostly aiming it towards the boys. "It took us weeks to not have anyone disqualified."

The four boys just mildly shrugged, all smiling happily.

"So on to the scores," Marlene prompted, tapping her wand impatiently. Lily chuckled, waving her wand to allow the 'score board' to appear.

_I. 125_

_II. 180_

_III. 95_

"We won!" Emmeline crowed, throwing her arms up and spinning in place. Lily laughed at her, flinching when Emmeline brought her hand up, requesting a high-five. Lily reached up and gave her one, laughing loudly as Emmeline spun again, twirling around the other people standing in the circle, before holding her hand up to James to also high-five him. He return it with as much enthusiasm as Emmeline had. He grabbed her hand and spun her in a dance as she let out another cheer.

As he spun Emmeline, he held out his other hand for Lily. Rather reluctantly, she placed her hand in his and with surprising force he pulled her towards him, then spun her, the last of her hair spilling from her ponytail. She giggled and added one more spin, enjoying the small dance they did in victory.

"Last," Dorcas grumbled, clearly looking unhappy. Remus tried to console her, but Lily caught Dorcas' dirty look that sent towards Peter, who seemed to cower beneath the glare. Remus, despite his team's loss, looked happier than she'd seen him in days. He was smiling, the light scars across his cheek stretching.

"I still don't think it was fair game," Marlene whined, refusing to shake Lily's hand.

"What makes you say that?" Lily chuckled, trying to balance herself, slightly dizzy from the spinning.

"Because you won," Marlene replied, sticking out her tongue.

"What _was _that?" Sirius asked, grabbing onto Lily's elbow. He looked down at her with the same mix of disbelief and awe as he had before, but a bit of anger added in. Marlene looked confused for a moment, then dawned with realization and laughed, patting him on the shoulder.

"She does that," she sympathized, acknowledging Lily's dangerous tactics.

"Not without repercussions," Lily winced, dusting off her shirt. The knees of her leggings were torn, revealing scraped, slightly bloody skin. Beneath her shirt, Lily knew the skin was raw and bruised. "But it's worth it," she confessed, a smirk sliding onto her lips.

"What is?" James asked, coming into the conversation. "What's happened?" He saw Lily studying her 'battle wounds'. Part of the elbow of her sleeve was worn, threads frayed. She stared down at it in dismay.

"She's gone mad," Sirius stated, his tone still quite serious. He clapped a hand to his own forehead, his eyes rolling skyward. "Dear Merlin, does she always do things like that?"

"I thought we already told you that," Marlene commented, smirking down at Lily.

"What'd she do?" James cut in again, clearly curious.

"She-" Sirius stumbled, unsure of how to explain what she did, without making her sound like a true mad person.

"Won the game," Lily smiled up at James, shrugging. He looked down at her curiously, obviously bothered by not knowing.

"If she plays like that, I want a bloody rematch," Sirius complained.

"Right?" Marlene cried the same time James exclaimed, "Like what?"

"Okay, let's get upstairs!" Alice called to the group, nodding her head towards the stairs. She stifled a yawn, barely able to cover her mouth. "I'm knackered," she moaned.

"Sounds _good_ to me," Marlene agreed, stretching her arms high above her. "Let's head up."

The small group followed each other back up to the Gryffindor tower. And although Lily was worn out and feeling the ache in her muscles, she knew she wouldn't be able to sleep much.

* * *

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Hope you all liked it!


	14. Chapter 14

NEXT CHAPTER! Woo!

* * *

"Why do we do this every time?" Marlene whined. She sat on her bed, half under the covers still. Her hair was stuck up in odd angles, the back strangely poofed up. If Lily had the energy, she would have made fun of her friend but instead she only moaned, trying to snuggle further back under the warm covers.

Even Emmeline looked tired, though the girl herself seemed to have been born and raised in the morning light. She was, unlike the other girls, able to get up and shower with only a little lag. Alice was the next to get up, purely driven by the fact she had promised Frank a morning breakfast date. Lily, Dorcas, and Marlene, however, had no such previously made engagements.

"Come on," Emmeline scolded tiredly. "You'll all be late for classes."

"I don't want to go to Transfiguration..." Lily moaned softly, rubbing at her tired eyes. They ached beneath the heels of her hands and she struggled to keep them open. "Please let me skip it."

"It's technically only your third class of the year," Emmeline pointed out, coming over to stand next to Lily's bed.

"McGonagall would torch you," Alice said, struggling to pull her knee highs on. Emmeline nodded her agreement hastily before turning back to finish her own morning routine. Eventually Lily forced herself up, figuring the two girls right. She threw the covers off rather grumpily, swinging her legs off the side and jumping up. She stretched languidly, feeling that her hair probably looked just as wild as Marlene's.

"We shouldn't have stayed up so late talking," Marlene admitted and Lily still found her sitting up in bed in the exact same position she had last seen her in.

"It wasn't very smart," Lily agreed, walking towards the bathroom. The boys and girls had only stayed up a little longer, after lighting a small fire in the hearth. When the two groups departed their separate ways, the girls themselves had stayed up much later in the dormitory.

Lily chuckled as she caught Emmeline trying to rouse Dorcas awake. "Good luck," she snickered as Emmeline let out a loud, annoyed sigh as the blonde girl underneath the covers seemed to be passed out cold. Lily shut the door behind her before she could see what Emmeline would attempt next.

The water heated quickly as Lily stripped, mindful of the raw flesh at her elbows and knees. She had fallen asleep in the clothes she had worn in the game, too exhausted to change. The clothes seemed to peel off of her cuts, dried with blood. Her reflection in the mirror revealed dark bruises along her ribs and stomach, the skin scraped lightly. When she slid into the shower, the abrasions stung painfully and she hissed in annoyance. The shower ended up being a rather short one, as Lily really only managed to wash her hair before wimping out and forgoing any body wash. She toweled off hastily and changed into her clean clothes.

When she stepped out of the bathroom, Marlene was now waiting at the bathroom door, as Dorcas seemed to be in the same position Marlene had been in previously; sitting up and groggily staring at the room. Emmeline, it seemed, had given up.

Emmeline herself hissed in empathy when she noticed Lily's scraped knees. When Lily looked down at the pale skin covered in cuts, she winced.

"It doesn't hurt as bad as you think," she tried to convince her friend. She lifted her leg, resting her barefoot against the bed as she reexamined the cuts. "I swear, I think the shower just made it look worse," she added, peering down at her knobbly knee.

"You going to pay a visit to Pomfrey?" Emmeline inquired, also examining Lily's knee. She reached out to touch the skin and Lily flinched like a child, wary of her friend's hand. Emmeline only giggled.

"Yes," Lily decided. "Well, maybe," she thought. "Maybe after class."

"Probably have her look at your elbow, too," Marlene pointed out as she emerged from the bathroom. Lily pulled at her arm in question, twisting to try and get a look. Her white school shirt was stained red at the elbow, blood blossoming through the material.

"Oh, bloody hell," Lily murmured, reaching to grab her wand. "_Tergeo,"_ she said, causing the red stain disappear. From the odd angle she held her arm, she watched as more blood seeped through the fabric.

"I think I've got some bandages in my trunk somewhere," Marlene offered, throwing it open. She rifled through it for a minute as Lily began to roll up her sleeve, mindful of the blood.

"I didn't even think it was that bad," she thought aloud.

"You never do," Marlene responded, finding a long strip of gauze. "This will probably work for now, but you should most likely have Poppy look it."

"I know, I know," Lily replied, holding her arm out obediently as Marlene began to wrap it. She patted it once it was done, allowing Lily to take her arm back.

"Let's get going," Emmeline prompted, her bag already over her shoulder as she waited by the dormitory's entrance.

"Hold on," Lily beseeched, rolling her sleeve back down. She grabbed a cardigan and slid into her flats. Grabbing her wand off of her vanity, she slid it into her waistband and turned to face Marlene, ready to go.

"Aren't you going to grab your bag?" Marlene asked, nodding her head towards said bag on the floor by Lily's bed.

Lily shrugged. "I don't have class till 10 O'clock," she informed her friend. "But I might as well grab it..."

"I have History," Marlene whined, holding the door open for Lily. "I can't stand History in the morning. It's absolutely dreadful."

"We'll get you some coffee," Lily promised, grinning up at Marlene as they made their way down the stairs.

"Eugh, I don't understand how you can stand that dark ," Marlene grumbled.

"My mum got me on it when I was young," Lily told her, skipping the last step, leaning against the wall. She waited for Marlene as she shrugged on her grey cardigan. She winced as she brushed her elbow.

"Make sure to get that checked by Poppy later. Remember last time you got cut up and didn't?" Marlene reminded.

"Yes," Lily admitted, grimacing.

"Get what checked?" Remus interrupted, opposite of them at the foot of the boy's dormitory stairs. Lily smiled warmly in greeting, noticing his bright smile. The perpetual dark circles that rested under his eyes seemed darker than normal, but Remus's eyes shown brightly. He looked happy, if not exhausted.

"Morning, Lupin," Marlene greeted, smiling in return.

"Morning, ladies," he replied, readjusting his book bag across his body. His hair looked actually groomed today, instead of lying flat and lifeless. Lily couldn't help but notice how he seemed to stand taller. "Get what checked?" he prodded again, looking curiously between the two girls.

"Lily got herself cut herself last night," Marlene told him. Lily raised her elbow and all three simultaneously looked down at it.

"Holy-" Lily started, shocked to see that the blood was already seeping through the bandages and the two layers of fabrics.

"What did you do?" Remus asked, his eyebrows raising in concern.

"Must of really cut it up when I jumped off the staircase last night," Lily murmured, shrugging her cardigan back off.

"You what?" Remus asked, flabbergasted. "Here, I've got a potion that will heal this up in my dorm," he sighed. "From that bleeding, it doesn't seem like a small paper cut."

Lily laughed, rolling up her sleeve. The fabric was wet with blood and pulled away from the bandages with a squelch. She made a noise of disgust, surprised by the amount of blood.

"Come on," Remus insisted, placing his hand under her uninjured elbow and prompting her forward.

"I've got to get to class," Marlene said. "I'll meet you at lunch," she told Lily, waving a good bye.

"See you later," Lily replied, allowing Remus to lead her up the stairs. She began to unravel the bandages, the gauze sticking together annoyingly.

"How hard did you fall?" Remus inquired, holding the boy's dormitory open for her.

"Pretty hard," she said sheepishly, pulling the last of the bandage off of her arm. Remus took it from her and threw it into a nearby waste basket. She followed him to his bed, where his trunk was set against the wall. As she stood there clutching at her elbow, she realized that this was the first official time she was in the 6th year boy's dormitory. The furthest she'd ever gone was to the stairs.

The large circular room was identical to the girl's, and if possible, almost cleaner. Two of the beds had their curtains pulled closed, while the other three, including Remus', were unoccupied. On the nightstand beside one of the empty beds housed a picture of Alice, along with various other items, and so Lily thought it safe to assume that the owner of the bed was Frank.

The empty bed beside that seemed to have no tell-tale signs of the owner, though notebooks and books were piled precariously on the nightstand. When Lily looked closer, she did notice a small picture frame of a wizarding photo. A man and a woman, both with dark hair and warm smiles.

She jumped as Remus tossed open the trunk's lid, the wood slamming against the stone wall. He began rifling through it's contents, most of which were books and clothes. When she peered in from behind him, she noticed multiple little flasks and phials filled with potions.

"Why so many potions?" she asked, curious, becoming distracted as she felt blood drip from between her fingers that held up her elbow. She pulled a disgusted face, unsure if she should grip the wound tighter or looser.

Remus stepped forward with a small clothe and phial filled with greenish liquid. He pressed the clothe to the elbow, trying to mop up the blood from her arm and elbow. She held her other hand, covered in blood, uselessly in the air. She resisted trying to wipe it on her skirt.

"I'm interested in becoming a Healer," Remus supplied after a moment as he examined the jagged, bleeding cut. Lily had to look away from the gaping wound.

"Really?" she asked, looking skyward towards the ceiling. "You never told me that," she murmured decidedly, thinking over the past five years. Remus only shrugged, but remained silent.

"You're really bleeding here," he pointed out, releasing a nervous chuckle. He turned the cloth over to the clean side and pressed it against the cut once more.

They both jumped when the bathroom door slammed open, the sound of wood against stone creating a loud crack. James stepped through the doorway, glasses in one hand and a towel in the other as he dried his hair lazily.

"Sorry, but not sorry," he sang, his voice muffled as he ran the towel back over his face. He stood with his white, uniform shirt open, his pants zipped, but not buttoned. His feet were bare against the cold stone floor. "Sirius, I know you're still sleeping!" he boomed, walking over to his own bed with memorized steps. He tossed the towel onto his bed, along with his glasses.

"Bloody hell, Prongs," Sirius' voice groaned sleepily from behind a pair of bedding curtains. "Don't be such a prick."

Remus cleared his throat loudly, as if to alert the room of the lady in their presence.

"Remus?" James asked, peering over towards where Lily and Remus stood. He squinted briefly, before turning back to his bed and grabbing a clean red and gold tie. "I thought you left already," James remarked.

"I did, but I came back to help Lily," Remus told him, lightly smirking.

"Lily?" James asked, his tone immediately turning curious. "What happened?" He began buttoning up his shirt, his tie hanging loose around his shoulders.

"She appears to be bleeding quite profusely from her elbow, so I've brought her up here to clean it up," Remus informed him, catching Lily's eye and smiling humorously.

"You brought her-" James started to repeat, grabbing his glasses from the bed and sliding them onto his nose quickly. "Lily!" he exclaimed, finally noticing her. He stood frozen momentarily, clearly shocked to find her in their dorm.

"Lily?" Sirius inquired from his bed. He slid the curtains around his bed open, peering out into the room curiously. He spotted her rather quickly and his sleepy, inquisitive frown changed seamlessly into a sleepy, charming smile. "Why, hello! Quite the good morning," he greeted, sitting up in his bed, bare chested. His hair, despite having just woken up, fell into his eyes effortlessly.

"Morning," Lily replied, trying to repress a smile. She tried to appear unfazed, but to see the two sixteen-year-old boys half naked seemingly effected her. Her cheeks warmed as the three boys stared at her in amusement.

Sirius was the first to move, throwing off his sheets and jumping out of his bed. He only wore a pair of long pajama pants and Lily, out of common decency, turned her head.

"Bit embarrassed?" Sirius teased, purposely flexing his arm muscles as he gathered up a pair of clean clothes. Lily scoffed, her eyes rolling naturally, but moved to look to James on their own accord. He was staring at her, still seemingly frozen, his shirt still half unbuttoned down to his belly button. She looked away quickly, moving to examine her elbow.

"Nothing I haven't seen before," she declared coolly.

It wasn't necessarily untrue. James Bond had appeared shirtless multiple times on the telly.

Despite her best efforts, she could feel her cheeks warm further. She became grateful as Remus began cleaning her elbow again, gently swiping away the blood.

Her spoken response seemed to unfreeze James and she watched out of the corner of her eye as he finished buttoning up his shirt and tucking in the shirttails. When he started to knot his tie, he meandered over to where Remus and Lily were standing. He let out a low whistle when he caught sight of her elbow.

"Looks like that hurts," he murmured, straightening his tie.

"I've gotten accustomed to high pain tolerance," she admitted, feeling a twinge of annoyance when she caught both James and Sirius sharing a twin look of amusement. "Must you two always make innuendos?" she asked, rolling her eyes.

James turned his body away, his normal cocky grin adourning his face and returned to his own bed.

Sirius shrugged his bare shoulders, smiling happily. "You're the one who said it," he pointed out, heading towards the bathroom. Lily chose not to respond, grimacing when Remus dabbed at her wound once more.

"We'll have to do this quickly," Remus told her. "It'll burn," he warned, twisting the cap off of the small phial. Lily bit her lip, but nodded, bracing herself for the pain. Remus tipped it over, the consistency of the potion appearing like lotion. In one motion, he brought it to her elbow.

"Ouch," she whispered quietly, berating herself as she felt tears sting at the inner corner of her eyes. He gave her an apologetic look as he rubbed the potion in further.

"Sorry," Remus murmured, tipping more of the potion onto his fingers.

"Makes it feel ten times worse," Lily laughed softly, biting her lip again as he applied more. The potion had an odd smell to it, making Lily wrinkle her nose.

"It'll scar," Remus informed her, wiping away the excess blood and potion with the cloth. It came away, stained an odd brown color. The torn flesh, which still lightly bled, seemed to appear looking less disgusting as it started to pull itself together.

"It's alright," Lily said distractedly, further examining the wound. "I'm used to it."

"Let me bandage it up and you'll be good to go," Remus told her, returning back to his trunk to retrieve more gauze. Lily stretched out her arm, happy that the flow of blood seemed to slow. "You can sit if you want to," he told her, his back facing her as he rummaged through the trunk once more.

"Oh, thank you," she replied and jumped to sit on his neatly made bed. She bounced lightly, her still slightly wet hair falling into her face. She idly glanced around the circular room, surveying the boy's choices of decorations. The walls were lined with Quidditch posters, which Lily found unsurprising, along with random wizarding bands and flyers. As her line of vision came full circle, she spotted a full sized Beatles poster.

"You listen to the Beatles?" she inquired, pleasantly surprised.

"Oh," Remus murmured, glancing behind him at the poster. "No, not really. I've introduced them to James and Sirius. They're rather enamored."

"Oh," Lily repeated, not quite sure how to take in the new information. "Interesting," she added.

Remus chuckled, stepping towards her with the new roll of gauze. She held her arm out obediently as he began to wrap it around her elbow. When he completed wrapping the gauze and taping it around her elbow, he patted it lightly and gave her a warm smile.

"All done," Remus happily reported. Lily returned the smile and jumped up from the bed, testing her elbow out for the umpteenth time.

"Thanks, Lupin," she beamed, rolling her sleeve back down her arm. "_Tergeo,_" she whispered, making the stain on her sleeve disappear.

"Not a problem, Evans," he returned, his smile bright.

"Alright, I guess I better head down to breakfast before class. I'll see you later, Remus," Lily waved her hand in a small goodbye and he repeated the gesture, turning back to his trunk. As she made her way towards the boys' door, the bathroom door slammed open against the wall, revealing a shameless Sirius standing only in a damp towel wrapped around his waist.

"Ah, Lily, I see you're still here," he grinned, sauntering over to his bed.

"Oh, Merlin, have some decency," Lily commanded, raising her hand to block his figure from her vision.

"_Please_," Lily heard James' drone dryly.

"Okay, I'm really going," Lily stated, turning towards the dorm's entrance.

"No, wait! I'll join you," Sirius cried, appearing to struggle to put on his shirt.

"No thanks," Lily said sweetly, already twisting the door knob. She didn't wait for a response as she stepped through the doorway and shut the wooden door behind her. She skipped down that steps, feeling happy that she did not have to rush to class. The Common Room was filled with a buzz, no doubt with happy conversations of the weekend starting.

Her journey to the Great Hall was almost uninterrupted until Lily heard Sirius' voice ring out from the top of the stairs in the Entrance Hall. He yelled her name again, catching the attention of multiple uninterested students.

"Okay, okay," Lily hissed as he came closer. "Calm down, won't you?"

"Never," Sirius grinned, irritatingly not out of breath. His grin was disarming as he held the oak door of the Great Hall open for her. She murmured her thanks, her eyes automatically searching for her friends.

"Looks like it will just be us two," Sirius commented with a smile. When she looked back over her shoulder at him, he gestured her on to look for a seat.

"No more innuendos," she threatened warily, turning to face forward. She chose the closest seat to where they stood, towards the end of the Gryffindor table.

"I can't make any promises," Sirius grinned, taking a seat from across her. She rolled her eyes, but grudgingly was unable to bite back a laugh. They sat in companionable silence as Sirius piled food onto his plate, while Lily grabbed a goblet and the pitcher filled with steaming coffee.

"Could you pass the sugar?" Lily asked politely. Sirius passed it effortlessly, the movement of his fork uninterrupted. She poured in a healthy dose, stirring her cup with a spoon. "So how did you enjoy last night?" she asked him, reaching for the cream herself.

He paused in his eating to waggle his eyebrows suggestively. Lily huffed and moved to stand.

Sirius swallowed hard, reaching out for her. "No, no, I'm sorry, I won't make any more jokes," he pleaded, though his eyes held a glint of amusement. Lily looked down at him warily. "I won't," he promised. Reluctantly, Lily sat back down, taking a sip of her coffee.

"You and your friends make innuendos all the time," Sirius pointed out, reaching for a biscuit.

"That's different," Lily said, stubbornly.

"How so?"

"Oh, bugger off," she replied, glaring at him balefully. Sirius chuckled, shaking his head.

They both looked up as a round of owls swooped in from the great windows. Lily recognized Mina immediately, the brown owl flying towards her gracefully.

"Dante," Sirius muttered, his tone dark. Lily glanced at him, then searched where he was looking. She found an eagle owl, with dark feathers descending towards them quickly. The large owl dropped a dark envelope in front of Sirius, who looked at it in immediate disgust. Lily only became distracted as Mina dropped a letter onto her plate. The small owl stayed only a moment longer, before flapping its wings and taking off.

Lily picked up the letter, recognizing her mother's handwriting sprawled across the front. Through her lashes, she glanced at Sirius again. His expression was dark as he picked up the letter roughly and tore through it carelessly. Immorally intrigued, Lily continued to watch him from beneath her lashes. His eyes danced across the paper quickly, his expression turning from angry to blank as he neared the end of the letter. However, before he put the letter down, his lips curled into a small satisfied smirk.

When he raised his eyes to her, she hastily returned her own to the envelope in front of her. She picked up the knife beside her plate and slide it beneath the flap, using the sliver utensil as an effective letter opener. The envelope tore easily and Lily plucked the handwritten letter from inside of it. Unfolding it, she began to read.

_Darling,_

_How is your school year going so far? I hope all is going well! How is Marlene? Thing's here have been pretty hectic. Vernon's family had visited this past weekend and, well, you know how perfect Petunia wants everything!_

_Which is why I am writing this letter. Petty's finally decided on the bridesmaids dresses. She wants them all fitted as soon as possible so there's nothing to worry about. As I sent in my previous letter, I've already spoken to Dumbledore about having you come home for a weekend. I've sent him a letter this morning, letting him know it shall be this weekend! _

_I know, I know, it's last minute, but I'm very excited to see you! I'm sure Petunia will be, too. Go easy on her, will you? She's been under a great deal of stress._

_I love you! See you soon, darling!_

_Mom_

"Oh, bollocks," Lily groaned, her eyes rolling heavenward. "Bloody fantastic."

Sirius' eyebrows rose comically as he watched her. "Family matters?" he asked wryly.

"What else?" Lily sighed, folding the letter back up and tucking it into the open envelope. "Same with you?" she asked lightly.

He nodded, stabbing at the food as his plate. Lily watched him for a moment, trying to find someway to comfort him without making it awkward. The moment hung in the air too long and she knew she missed her chance. She picked up her goblet again, taking a large gulp of coffee. Gazing aimlessly around the Great Hall, her eyes connected with the Headmaster's at the head table.

Dumbledore was grinning pleasantly at her as he motioned her forward with his hand.

"I'll be right back," Lily told Sirius as she made to stand. He looked at her questioningly, but nodded in acknowledgment. Lily made her way towards the teacher's table, avidly avoiding the Defense Against the Dark Arts professor's stinging gaze.

"Headmaster," Lily greeted warmly.

"Miss Evans," Dumbledore welcomed. "I assume you know why I've summoned you up here?"

"My mother's letter?" Lily smiled, taking an educated guess.

"Precisely the reason, Lily." He leaned forward slightly and Lily copied his action. "I will have Professor McGonagall fetch you a quarter till 8. She will assist you with your travel plans."

"Yes, sir."

"Have a nice day, Lily," he dismissed her, smiling pleasantly. Lily nodded withher smile, spinning and returning to her seat from across Sirius.

"What was that about?" Sirius inquired curiously. Lily let out a long, exasperated sigh.

"My sister's getting married and I'm supposed to be a bridesmaid. She wants me to try on the dress and all of that. My mum's got permission from Dumbledore to have me visit."

Sirius nodded, still playing with the food on his plate. "That sounds.. interesting. When do you go?"

"Tonight, apparently."

Sirius' eyebrows rose in slight surprise this time. He whistled. "Pretty soon, then."

"Pretty soon," Lily repeated to herself, taking another large gulp of her cooled coffee. "I better be going," Lily remarked, adjusting the strap of her bag on her shoulder.

"I'll join you," Sirius replied, dusting crumbs from his hands. They both stood and began to walk towards the Great Hall's doors.

"You have class?" Lily asked.

"Transfiguration."

"I haven't seen you in class," Lily noted with skepticism.

"Because I haven't been," Sirius grinned, cracking his fingers nonchalantly.

"But McGonagall-"

"She won't be a problem."

"I'm glad I decided to come to class then," Lily replied in amusement. She and Sirius shared a grin as they ascended the stairs.

-:-

"Mr. Black. I'm glad to see that you've decided to grace us with your presence," McGonagall greeted in a wry voice as Lily and Sirius stepped through the classroom's door.

"Tis no problem, Professor," Sirius gestured grandly, a bland smile on his face.

"Please, have a seat," the Professor commanded rather than requested. Rather reluctantly, Sirius followed Lily to the front row and sat beside her at a desk just to the left of the professor's own.

Sirius politely held the chair out for Lily as she moved to sit beside him, dropping her bag onto the floor. As she reached down to collect her class supplies, she watched him. "You going to be able to catch up? You can glance over my notes, if you'd like," Lily offered. Sirius lightly scoffed and waved her off.

"I'm good," he told her, grinning his usual smirk. Lily watched him a moment longer, setting her notebook and quill in front of her in their usual order. He was leaning back in the chair, a faux nonchalance clinging to his form. He twirled his wand idly in his right hand.

"Are you okay?" Lily asked, lowering her voice slightly. Sirius faltered in spinning his wand, glancing at her with narrowed eyes. When he noticed the concern in her expression, he quickly let his eyes fall to the desk top in front of him. The twirling of his wand halted completely. Lily watched as his demeanor changed as he leaned forward, crouching over the desk as he rested on his crossed arms.

"Family matters," was all Sirius grunted and Lily could see his jaw clenched tightly in anger.

"The owl?"

"My mother's," Sirius answered, a twinge of bitterness in his voice.

"Ah," Lily said in understanding, but not really understanding.

"Yeah," Sirius replied. Lily decided not to push it, instead looking back to her notebook and opening it to a clean page.

McGonagall started the class shortly after, Sirius leaning back into his nonchalant stance. He appeared to have no problem catching up on the information McGonagall was teaching. Lily felt envious, but assumed he had to have had help, believing Remus or James must have lent him their notes. Or possibly Peter, Lily mentally added on, feeling slightly guilty for not thinking of their fourth, loyal friend.

The class would have usually passed by slowly, the subject being one of Lily's least favorites, but Sirius, despite being obviously effected by his mother's letter, had managed to lighten the atmosphere between the two. His small, witty comments had caused the two to receive multiple glares from the serious, Transfiguration professor. Lily's cheeks hurt both from smiling and from biting the inside of her cheek trying to refrain from laughing.

"I'm never sitting next to you again," Lily promised, unable to hold back her laughter any longer. McGonagall had dismissed the class early, her lips pursed tightly as she looked down at Sirius over her glasses. Sirius decided to join Lily on her way to the kitchens and both looked forward to a late lunch.

"But you'll miss me," he insisted, looking down at her with a roguish grin.

"Not anymore than you'll miss me," Lily chimed.

"You wound me with how much you doubt my enjoyment of your company," Sirius crooned, his eyelashes fluttering comically as his lips turned down in a deep frown.

"My apologies, I never realized how much your yearning for a kitchen partner effected your feelings," Lily responded demurely. As they approached the top of the staircase, Sirius gestured her forward with a long arm and a bow. Lily curtsied in return, flippantly holding her skirt out like a real lady. Sirius laughed as she straightened awkwardly and she tried to reach out and punch him on the arm, but he sidestepped her easily.

"Prick," she threw at him. He grinned as if he had not heard her at all, beckoning her forward again. She looked at him wearily, trying to keep the smile from her face. As they stepped onto the staircase, the stone steps below them shifted immediately as if they were waiting for the two. Sirius nearly lost his balance as Lily actually did. Her foot slipped from the step and she was sure she would have fallen on her bum, but Sirius reached out and gripped her upper arm tightly.

They stood awkwardly until Lily finally caught her footing on the step. Sirius waited until she balanced before letting the grip on her arm go.

"Thanks," said Lily, her lips turned into a sheepish grin.

"Never a problem," Sirius returned. "I'm starting to realize this is an eternal job of watching out for you."

"I appreciate all the time you put in," Lily laughed, following him down the rest of the stairs.

"Oi!" Sirius called from in front of her and Lily looked up curiously, looking for the cause of Sirius' exclamation.

"'Ello," James said, standing at the bottom of the stairs. His shirttails were untucked from the top of his school pants and Lily had to admit he looked a little lost as he stood alone, hands deep in his pockets.

"Want to head to the kitchens with us?" Sirius invited his friend. James' hand moved from his pocket to run through his hair. Lily shifted her feet, feeling a fleeting flash of awkwardness.

"Oh, nah, I was actually just heading up to the dorms," said James, motioning uselessly with hand in the general direction of the Gryffindor tower.

"You sure, mate?" Sirius asked, tilting his head as he looked at James.

"I've already eaten, anyways," James informed them. "I'll meet up with you later, Padfoot." He brushed past them hastily, taking the steps two at time.

"See you later, Prongs," Sirius called to James' retreating back. Sirius looked back at Lily, shrugging his shoulders.

"Maybe he's tired from last night?" Lily suggested.

"Maybe," Sirius acknowledged. Like his friend, he buried his hands deep into his pockets as they meandered the rest of the way to the school's kitchens.

"What's with the nicknames?" Lily wondered aloud.

Sirius let out a low chuckle. "I don't think that you'd want to know."

"You're right. I doubt I would," Lily agreed.

They walked in silence the rest of the way to the kitchens. They chose the same spot that they had sat in the previous time; the house elves clambering to assist them. When countless plates were placed in front of them, Lily chose a simple ham and cheese sandwich. Sirius piled sandwiches and chips onto his plate and began eating right away.

"So are you excited about going home?" Sirius asked between bites.

"Yes and no," Lily replied honestly.

"How so," Lily made out from Sirius' full mouth.

"Yes, I'm excited to see my mother, but not so excited to see my sister," Lily answered, picking the ham off of her sandwich.

"Why?" came the barely recognizable response.

"My sister's not the best company."

"Ah."

"Ah, yes."

"I can sympathize," Sirius mused, before taking a sip of pumpkin juice from his goblet. Lily looked at him curiously, mirroring his actions by taking a drink from her own goblet. "My brother," he elaborated.

"You have a brother?" Lily queried.

"Yes. How could you not know?" Sirius asked, looking at her with a slightly confused expression.

"I never really asked," Lily answered. "I hear the Black name too much, so I just assumed you were all cousins. Except for Bellatrix and Narcissus. They act like sisters."

"Oh," Sirius murmured, a considering look on his face. "Well, my brother and I don't get along very well." A twinge of bitterness.

"Regulus?" Lily pondered.

"I thought you didn't know," Sirius remarked, taking another bite of a new sandwich.

"I remember him.. when I used to be friends with Severus. I think I remember seeing him 3rd year.. he's two years younger than you?"

"Correct."

The two fell quiet and Lily reflected on the fact that her and Sirius seemed to be in very similar positions.

"What about your dad?" he asked, looking up at her between bites.

"You don't know?" Lily asked.

"Know?"

"My died passed away after 2nd Year," Lily told him, realizing her face probably held the same expression as his did just moments before.

"I'm sorry," he responded immediately.

"No, no, it's okay. I'm rather surprised Remus never told you," said Lily, thinking about how many times she and Remus discussed it.

"Remus isn't the one to really gossip," Sirius shrugged.

"That's good to know then," Lily murmured. "Okay, I should really be going. I've got to let the other girls know that I'm leaving. And pack. And finish the rest of my homework." She pushed her plate forward and stood, chuckling when multiple elves rushed forward to assist her further.

"I'll catch you later, then," Sirius grinned, waving goodbye with a sandwich in his hand.

"Don't start any trouble," Lily warned him, making her way towards the door.

"No more than usual," he promised. Lily decided it was safer to not respond to his mischievous tone.

-:-

"I need a nap," Lily sighed, falling onto the couch beside Marlene. James sat on the other side of her friend, a rather worn and torn notebook set between the two Quidditch players. Lily only joined them as her dark haired friend had waved her over and patted the open spot next to herself.

"You need more than a nap," Marlene commented with a mocking, insinuating tone.

"Hey," Lily defended rather lazily.

"I better get going," James interrupted, jumping up from his seat. "We can go over this more tomorrow during practice, Mckinnon."

"Later, Captain," Marlene spoke to his retreating back. Lily watched after him, feeling a strong sense _déjà vu._

"Is he alright?" Lily asked, curiously.

"He seemed fine to me," Marlene replied, following Lily's gaze and the two girls watched as their fellow Gryffindor climbed up the dormitory stairs and disappeared from sight. "Why do you ask?" Marlene questioned, a sly smile on her lips.

"Shut up. I don't know. Sirius and I ran into him earlier and he didn't seem his normal jovial, smart arse self," Lily remarked.

"You and Sirius?" Marlene inquired, the sly smile never leaving her face.

"We had class together, knock it off," Lily ordered, rolling her eyes. Marlene waggled her eyebrows suggestively, leaning closer to the redhead.

"Showing him those secret strategies?" Marlene hinted.

"Mar," Lily threatened, biting her tongue to keep from smiling. "I wouldn't do that, for fear that my best friend would bring me harm for moving in on her territory."

Marlene scoffed loudly, her expression sliding into one of pure disgust and disbelief. "Don't you dare insinuate what you're insinuating," the dark haired girl warned.

"I wouldn't even dare," Lily responded with an air of fake innocence.

"You better watch yourself," Marlene warned further. Lily laughed loudly, leaning further back into the couch away from the foreboding expression on her friend's face.

"Well, to completely change the subject," Lily started, readjusting herself on the couch. "My mum sent me a letter. She's having me go home this weekend for the dress fitting."

"This weekend?" Marlene repeated, collapsing back against the couch next to her friend. "What? The wedding's not until December I thought."

"It is, but you know Pet. She'll want to have everything done as soon as possible."

"Obsessive much?" Marlene marveled.

"It's Petunia's way," Lily shrugged. "McGonagall's coming to fetch me at 8 tonight."

"I wonder how you'll be travelling," Marlene wondered.

"I don't think by Floo," Lily reasoned. "Oh, Merlin, could you imagine Petunia's face? She'd be horrified."

"Knowing your luck, she'd somehow be trying on the dress in front of everyone and here you come, straight from the Floo Network, flinging soot _everywhere_."

Lily shuddered at the image; her sister would be _furious_. Her sister would disown her and never speak to her again. "That would be beyond horrifying."

Marlene giggled openly. "I haven't seen your sister in over a year, but that would be quite the occasion."

"Please don't give me nightmares," Lily pleaded.

"It's apart of the job description," Marlene informed her.

"Of being a best friend?" Lily asked incredulously.

"Absolutely."

"You're a terrible person."

"As I've been told many times before."

"Okay, I really need a nap," Lily yawned, barely trying to conceal it.

"I'd really like to join you, but I've really got to get finished with my Charm's essay before class," Marlene sighed pitifully. "Oh, don't give me that look," she demanded, though the look on Lily's face did not change.

"I'm not giving you a look," said Lily, though her expression remained the same.

"Yes. Yes, you are."

"No, I'm not," Lily insisted. Marlene gave her a condescending look. "Alright, I will go upstairs and take my nap then." And Lily jumped up, shooting Marlene one last 'look' before rushing upstairs to avoid retaliation.

She found it unsurprising as she found the dormitory empty. Dropping her book bag onto her trunk, she left herself collapse on her bed, not bothering to change into something more comfortable. Curling into herself on her side, she let her eyes close.

"Lily," someone whispered into her ear. She did not move.

"Lily." More insistent.

"_Lily_!" someone shouted into her ear.

"_What_," she cried, her heart jumping to her throat. She sat up, feeling overly disorientated.

"It's a quarter to 8," Marlene told the redhead.

"It can't be," Lily stuttered. She rubbed at her eyes, trying to focus. "I just closed my eyes!"

"I'm afraid it's true," Emmeline added.

"The curse of naps," Dorcas drawled, an overly wise tone to her voice.

"You guys couldn't have waken me up early?" Lily whined, jumping out of bed.

"We were at dinner," Marlene told her, jumping onto Lily's now unoccupied bed.

Lily ignored her, annoyed at the sorry excuse. She threw open her trunk and located her old, trusty burlap knapsack. Throwing caution to the wind, she started tossing clean underwear into it, a pair of nice bell-bottoms, and a few dressy shirts. Tightening it shut, she threw the bag onto her bed, paying no mind to the girl laying there.

"Oi!" she heard Marlene cry and Lily smiled in satisfaction. She began riffling through her trunk again, finding a pair of black tights, her favorite navy flowered sundress, and a long sleeved denim jacket. Rushing to strip off her school uniform, she tossed it also onto the occupied bed. She slipped into the tights, securing them at her wait, before slipping the cotton dress over her head. Savagely, she ran her fingers through her hair to try to rid it of tangles.

"Where's Alice?" Lily asked, only half satisfied with her hair, but decided to not worry about it.

"Still with Frank, I believe," Emmeline said from her bed.

"I was hoping to say goodbye before I left," Lily murmured, shrugging on the denim jacket and releasing her hair from beneath the collar.

"You'll only be gone for two days," Dorcas reasoned.

"Oh, right," Lily realized. She laughed despite herself, feeling flustered. She exhaled loudly, the breath blowing the hair out of her face.

"You'll be back before you know it," Marlene inserted.

"I know, I know," Lily breathed. She jumped when three, very sharp knocks hit the dormitory door.

"Miss Evans?" she heard McGonagall's voice call through the wood.

"Coming!" Lily announced. She fluttered back over to her trunk, going through a mental list of things that she would need.

"Underwear?" Marlene asked, quickly recognizing what her friend was doing.

"Check," Lily murmured.

"Shirts?"

"Check."

"Pants?"

"Check."

"Night clothes?"

"Check."

"Lily, I think you're good to go," Marlene insisted.

Lily nodded, patting her wand that was securely inside the knapsack. She'd have to keep it hidden, otherwise Petunia..

"Miss Evans?" McGonagall called again, the clear loss of patience in her voice obvious. Lily winced, sliding into her flats and rushed to open the door. McGonagall stood before her in the doorway, a reprimanding look on her face.

"I'm so sorry, Professor," Lily apologized sincerely, allowing the older woman before her to turn and begin to descend the stairs. Lily wildly waved goodbye to her friends inside the dorm room before shutting the door tightly behind her.

"Please, congratulate your sister on my behalf," McGonagall requested as the two made their way down the dormitory stairs.

"Absolutely," Lily replied, knowing full well that she would do no such thing. Would Petunia really appreciate getting a congratulations from her sister's witchy professor? Lily felt it safe to assume that no, her sister would not appreciate it.

In the Common Room, the redhead and the Head of Gryffindor House received many curious looks. She caught Alice and Frank hiding in a secluded corner, locked in what appeared to be a rather... heated discussion. Lily prayed for Alice's sake that the Professor would not catch sight of the couple. In front of the fire, Lily caught of the marauders' head bent over the coffee table in front of them; James and Remus shared the couch, while Sirius sat in a loveseat that was pulled up right next to the table. Peter sat on the floor beside them, his chin resting in his hand. The parchment in front of them easily recognizable.

She hoped for their sake that McGonagall would not look their way either.

Sirius seemed the first to notice the hushed whispers spreading in the room and he looked up curiously. He easily caught sight of Lily walking behind the Professor towards the Common Room entrance. He waved enthusiastically and mouthed a 'good luck'.

She returned the wave and smiled her thanks. James and Remus both noticed Sirius waving and both looked towards the direction their friend was focusing his attention. Remus, though confused, followed Sirius' actions by waving a goodbye to her. James, however, only watched her curiously.

Lily turned her head around to the Professor's back, not wanting to run into her when they approached the entrance. She followed McGonagall silently, still feeling exhausted despite her nap.

"Professor? Do you know how I'm going to get home?" Lily questioned.

"We've arranged you to be taken home by the train."

"Really? The Hogwarts' Express?"

"Yes, Lily."

"Oh," Lily replied lamely. Prepare for a long trip, she thought to herself.

McGonagall only escorted her to the Entrance Hall where they came upon Hagrid, who was shuffling awkwardly on his feet.

"'lo, Lily," he greeted shyly.

"Hagrid," she beamed. "How are you?"

"'M doing jus' fine," he replied, a smile blooming on his face. "'M here to take ya down to the station," he informed her.

"Wonderful," she smiled, placing her hand inside of his offered elbow.

"Please, no side-tracks this time, Rubeus," McGonagall chided.

"'Course, ma'm," he responded immediately, even doing a little salute. McGonagall looked up at him wearily, but spun on her heel and headed back towards the stairs. "Too strict," Hagrid pointed out, smiling charmingly, not even bothering to lower his voice.

"Thank you for escorting me, Hagrid," Lily interjected, not doubting for a moment McGonagall probably heard him with her cat-like ears.

"S'no problem, Lily. 'M happy to."

They walked side by side, though a little awkwardly as Lily tried to keep her hand in the crevice of his elbow. The height difference made it especially difficult, but Lily hated being rude.

"I see you're growing out your beard," Lily pointed out, grinning approvingly. For a moment, in the light of the dying sun, Lily thought she noticed Hagrid's cheeks lightly turn pink.

"'S nothing," he said proudly, using his other hand to scratch at the said beard. "Think it works?"

"Looks dashing," Lily promised, smiling sincerely.

"Thanks, Lily," said Hagrid, smiling bashfully.

The rest of the walk was filled with small talk, from the types of creatures Hagrid was taking care of, to what Lily was studying in classes. When the finally approached Hogsmeade station, Lily was able to catch sight of the train.

"'S right on time," Hagrid grinned. The station was deserted and dark, the sun having completely set only moments before they arrived. They both jumped when the train's whistle sounded, alerting its passengers of departure. "Better get you on there," Hagrid quipped, a nervous smile on his face.

"Thank you again, Hagrid," Lily earnestly. "I'll see you when I get back?"

"Absolutely," Hagrid promised, raising his hand to assist her up the stairs onto the train.

"Take care of those porlocks!" she called out of the window, surprised when the train beginning moving as soon as her feet stepped aboard, as if it were waiting just for her.

"Will do!" he proclaimed, waving his large hand frantically.

She found an empty compartment easily, setting her knapsack on the seat beside her. She watched as the terrain rolled by and once the tall towers of Hogwarts were out of sight, she finally let her eyes close. Sleep came easily.

* * *

I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Sorry it took me a long time again.. Thank you all so much for the reviews. They really help!

I made this chapter a litttle longer in apology..


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